£10m Champions League clause is a looming threat for Man United and Michael Carrick

Manchester United are chasing Champions League qualification under Michael Carrick this season and failure to achieve it would come with serious consequences.

At the start of the season, expectations were low for Manchester United following a club-worst 15th-place finish in the Premier League last season.

But with 11 games remaining this season, United find themselves fourth in the table and all of a sudden the expectation is to qualify for the Champions League.

How many points will Man Utd get from the next five games? Let’s hear your predictions/hopes…

Michael Carrick took 13 points from his first five…

A top-five finish would secure Champions League football for 2026/27, and that is the top priority for Michael Carrick, who will hope that achieving that target might land him the permanent job in the summer.

Failure to reach Champions League will trigger £10m clause

According to BBC Sport, every season that United fail to compete in the Champions League, the value of the Adidas shirt sponsorship deal is decreased by £10 million.

United struck a world-record sponsorship deal with Adidas worth £900m over 10 years. If the Red Devils were in the Champions League for all 10 of those years, it would have been worth £90m per season.

But United have already gone two years without Champions League football. They have never gone three years without competing in the competition since it was launched in 1992.

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Champions League qualification is worth over £100m to United in terms of revenue generation. It would provide a huge injection to the transfer budget and also help to attract world-class players to Old Trafford.

Not only would United miss out on that £100m+ prize money if they fail to finish in the top five, but it would also start draining the sponsorship income.

Champions League is make-or-break for Man United

Ineos will be feeling fairly pleased about the improvements made at United this season. After all, it could hardly get much worse than 2024/25.

A huge £232m investment was made on five signings last summer, and they have made a huge impact in their debut season at Old Trafford.

But United have a crippling transfer debt that needs to be paid, and failure to reach the Champions League would provide a serious hurdle to the club’s rebuild.

READ MORE: Manchester United’s stance on proposed £750m sponsorship amid tensions at Premier League HQ

United need the funds from the new Champions League format just as much as fans want to see top European football back at Old Trafford.

If United do drop out of the top five and miss out, fans can expect a very underwhelming summer window and more cost-cutting to take place next season.

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