Manchester United's elimination at the quarter final stage of the Champions League will cost the club £15m in income compared to last season, reports the International Journal of Sports Marketing & Sponsorship. According to the Journal, sponsorship contracts would have included incentive clauses rewarding the club for reaching the final stages of the competition, payments of which could have netted United a further £2 million to £3 million.
Reaching the final of the Champions League would have additional potential benefits such as helping to grow the club's international fan base and increasing merchandising revenues - estimated at £1 million to £2 million.
"The figures will make depressing reading for the Glazers less than a week after estimates from JP Morgan stated that club matchday revenues in the next two years could drop by as much as £29 million," said Journal editor Michel Desbordes.
"The club has also stated that ticket prices for next season will be frozen and it is understood that JP Morgan's figures reflect an expected fall in corporate hospitality revenue. Fans will no doubt worry that the lower revenues will mean that there is less money in the transfer kitty at a time when the squad is looking increasingly vulnerable."
