Liverpool set to miss out on Champions League windfall despite contract agreement

While Liverpool might not have qualified for this season’s Champions League, Anfield bosses would have briefly had a clear favoured side to back in this year’s tournament instead.

Such an incentive would have grown even further too, once it became clear that the Reds would not need to rely on the progression of their fellow English clubs to secure their return to next year’s edition.

For purely financial reasons, at one point it would have benefitted Liverpool if Bayern Munich were crowned champions of Europe.

'Worst player on the pitch' - Dominik Szoboszlai makes honest admission about Liverpool criticism

Former Liverpool star who coached against Arne Slot admits surprise at appointment

When the Reds sold Sadio Mane to the Bavarians in a deal worth up to £35.1m in June 2022, one of the agreed clauses would have seen them receive a windfall if the German giants went on to win the Champions League.

Liverpool received an initial £27.4m for the Senegalese, with a further £7.7m in add-ons. This was made up of £5.1m due based on appearances, and £2.6m also owed, based on individual and team achievements.

But with Mane leaving Bayern last summer after just one season, how much of that additional fee the Reds ended up actually banking is debatable.

Bayern’s first initial bid was worth £21.5m, with its add-ons dismissed as ‘laughable’. Equating to a little over £4m, they were all based on individual and team achievements, with The Times reporting that the Reds would only receive the full fee if Munich were to win the Champions League, and the player the Ballon d’Or, each season over the course of his three-year contract.

This was still the case in their second offer, when offering an overall £30m package, which was also