Football finance expert Kieran Maguire doesn’t expect UEFA to abolish the 10-year coefficient system as part of the new Champions League format, namechecking Liverpool as a club who could duly benefit.
European football’s governing body recently confirmed changes to its flagship club competition which will see 36 teams qualify rather than the current 32, and the abolition of the long-standing group stage in favour of a league phase informally dubbed the ‘Swiss model’.
As explained by The Athletic, the new format could realistically see five Premier League clubs qualify, one more than the current four places reserved for English clubs. Had the change been brought in for next season, the Reds would be on course to make the tournament.
Despite some suggestions that UEFA will review their 10-year coefficient system which allows for greater revenue for clubs who enjoy success in Europe over the previous decade. Maguire thinks the contentious ruling will be kept and was critical of how it favours the perceived bigger clubs in the continent.
He told Football Insider: “I don’t think there is much chance of the 10-year UEFA coefficient being abolished. If you take a look at the current distribution, they get 30 per cent which does seem excessive.
“The aim of that is clearly to protect the interests of the elite and protect their incomes when clubs such as Liverpool do have a year out of the competition. From an investor point of view, you can understand why it is wanted, but it is essentially parachute payments with a small ‘p’.
“The new format will bring in more money, but if the elite clubs are going to get the same proportion of a much bigger cake then that is disappointing. It is a blow for aspirational clubs trying to push into European competition.”
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The 10-year coefficient benefitted Liverpool greatly in 2021/22, with the ruling accounting for £19.3m of the £89.2m they banked from reaching the Champions League final last year (The Mirror).
It was their third time getting to that stage in five seasons, while they’d also reached the Europa League final in 2016, all of which helped them to sit ninth in the historic coefficient.
Even if the Reds were to miss out on the competition for 2023/24 but qualify for the first edition of the new format, their cumulative 10-year performance would grant them a healthy supply of income.
While Liverpool could be among the big beneficiaries if UEFA keep the coefficient in place for the revised Champions League, it’s understandable why Maguire has questioned the fairness of the ruling, which appears to favour clubs who are already established as European heavyweights.
The various stakeholders will have differing views on the coefficient based on their placing within it, but the main takeaway for Jurgen Klopp’s side is that continued qualification for the tournament is crucial if LFC are to maximise the revenue coming into the club.