Real Madrid deemed the new Club World Cup in the United States extremely important. They wanted it to be treated as seriously as the Champions League.
Although the end result was not in Madrid’s favor, it was worth a try.
Madrid even paid Liverpool 10 million euros to sign Trent Alexander-Arnold a month early, and the Englishman lived up to expectations.
But for the players, the tournament was an additional burden after an already rigorous season. They were more fatigued and had less time for rest and vacation. A feud even broke out with Javier Tebas over the same issue.
Understandably, Los Blancos had to make it up to the players. And according to Marca, the club paid a bonus of 280,000 euros to each player for participating in the tournament.
Real Madrid earned massive revenue from the Club World Cup
According to the report, Real Madrid bagged more than 80 million euros from the tournament. The amount is significant, especially considering how few matches Madrid had to play and the fact that they did not even reach the final.
Given that the earnings came from the players’ hard work, it was only fair to reward them. The bonus of 280,000 euros was negotiated by the Real Madrid captains. The breakdown includes 50,000 euros for advancing from the group stage, 80,000 for the Round of 16, and 150,000 for reaching the semifinals.
The massive earnings from such a short tournament could be one of the key reasons Real Madrid support holding the Club World Cup every two years instead of the current four-year cycle.
Participation in the tournament cut the players’ vacation to just 24 days, significantly shorter than the usual break of over a month.
The upcoming season is going to be excruciatingly demanding for all the players. They will have to perform better, deliver stronger results than last season, and win more trophies to make up for last season’s drought.