Winning Europa League Group Matters for Tottenham Hotspur
By Aaron Coe
While it is great that Tottenham Hotspur have already qualified from Group J for the knockout phase of Europa League, winning the group is still important.
Despite dropping two points with a draw last week with LASK, Tottenham Hotspur have everything to play for in the Group Stages final match against Royal Antwerp. The winner of this sixth and final tie of the Group Stage wins the group, while the loser advances, but likely faces a tougher draw. With a better draw and frankly a bigger payday in mind, Tottenham Hotspur need to win the group.
Getting the Best Possible Draw
We have heard José Mourinho say it. We have typed it ourselves in other articles. At times we even believe it, Tottenham Hotspur is not afraid of any team in world football. That said, with efforts to win some glory still alive on multiple fronts, it does not hurt getting a bit easier road every now and then. Yes, Tottenham got lucky in the FA Cup draw, however, with the draw for the Round of 32 in Europa League Spurs have some control over the result.
We know two things that are true of a Group winner, they cannot play another Group winner in the Round of 32 and they cannot play one of the teams dropping down from the Champions League. This means in theory the 19 best teams – 20 if you include Spurs – are not available for Tottenham to draw in the Round of 32. Instead, Tottenham would be guaranteed a team that did not with their group and is not from England, leaving a relatively small pool.
Alternatively, its Tottenham lose, they could be draw by any of the then 20 top teams left in the tournament, not including Spurs as one of those 20. Of course, Antwerp and other English teams would be out, but anyone dropping down from the Champions League would be possible as would the other 11 Group winners. So, in terms of more certainty and likely just a better draw, Spurs need to win the group.
Winners Make More Money
Sometimes we forget about this part of the process, but teams do not play in these massive events for free. There are both costs to play – travel, lodging, food, expenses, etc. – and revenue that comes in from playing. Having qualified for the knockout phase of the tournament, Tottenham have guaranteed themselves at least another €500,000, based on 2019-20 payouts of Europa League prize money.
However, if Tottenham win the Group, that ½ a million is doubled to a cool €1,000,000. Add to that a bonus of €500,000 for making the Round of 32 and that is 1.5 million back to Spurs. This does not even factor in the money that comes from winning the game itself.
Again, based on last year’s payout figures, by giving up those two late goals last week, Tottenham Hotspur lost two points and €380,000. €380,000 is the difference in payout for drawing a match €190,000 versus winning a match €570,000. If you start to add this up, this one game for Tottenham is worth well over €2,000,000.
When we know only 2,000 fans can be in the stadiums, the debt that goes with the stadium, and the continual arms race for more and better players so every dollar counts for Tottenham Hotspur. If getting Daniel Levy an extra €2,000,000 to use on this team is not a reason to win a game, I do not know what is.
With an opportunity to win the group, secure a better opponent, and make a heck of a lot more money in the process for the club; Thursday’s game is a win-win all around for Tottenham, assuming they win of course and you can be sure José Mourinho has a plan to do that.