The battle for continental greatness between two of the worst teams in English soccer has its victor.
Tottenham Hotspur beat Manchester in the Europa League final Wednesday by a score of 1–0. The lone goal was questionably an own goal by United defender Luke Shaw, but was marked in the books as a Tottenham score.
The win elevates Tottenham to the Champions League next season, the highest level of European soccer that overflows with financial bonuses for its teams. Every team gets about $21 million for making the Champions League, and can get even more for winning and drawing big TV audiences. Arsenal earned roughly more than $130 million for making the Champions League semifinal, according to the Times of London.
Wednesday’s final was a battle between teams sitting at 16th and 17th in the Premier League table, two abysmal finishes for some of the top flight’s most historically successful clubs. They each recorded their worst season in club history, but managed their way into the Europa League final. After the European Performance Spots rule allowed all top five teams in the Premier League to advance to the Champions League this year, Tottenham will be the sixth English club in next year’s tournament. (The race for the top five spots is still up in the air, as the highest seven teams all have a path to the Champions League.)
In addition to winning a spot in the Champions League, Tottenham also earned an additional roughly $6.8 million in prize money for its victory in the Europa final.
Tottenham now moves into a gray area in its ongoing potential sale. Investors have shown interest for years, but the club’s chairman and his high valuation have reportedly held up talks. A boost from the Champions League has resurfaced conversations around a possible deal in recent weeks.
Tottenham is currently in the last Premier League spot before relegation, meaning all three teams below it are moving down to the Championship next year, marking a significant blow to the books.
United will now miss Europe for the first time since 2014–15. A win Wednesday would’ve been a saving grace for the club whose broadcast revenues have fallen by millions of dollars this year from missing the Champions League on top of hundreds of layoffs and other cost-cutting measures under billionaire Jim Ratcliffe. Manager Ruben Amorim, for example, bought Europa final tickets for 30 staffers, while players paid for charter flights for their families.
