Kozák and company earned 8 million euros

UEFA Executive Committee member František Laurinec has confirmed how much money our footballers and other participants in the 2016 European Championship will receive for qualifying.

The excitement of sports fans, a historic moment for Slovak football, and praise for coach Ján Kozák and his team — the national team has, for the first time in the era of independence, qualified for the European Championship. But in addition to applause and ovations, the national team has also secured the highest financial reward ever obtained by a Slovak sports team. František Laurinec, a member of the Executive Committee of the Union of European Football Associations (UEFA), told the Economic Daily for the first time officially how the bonuses will be distributed to the teams participating in next year’s tournament in France. “For each of the 24 participants of EURO 2016, 8 million euros are currently guaranteed. Depending on results, this amount can be further increased,” Laurinec said. Each victory in the group stage will bring the teams 1 million euros, and a draw will bring half a million.

How much of the mentioned 8 million euro package will go directly to the national team players and members of the coaching staff? “We resolved the distribution of potential qualification bonuses before the start of the qualifiers. One-third will go to the national team, one-third will remain with the federation, and one-third will be used for expenses connected with Slovakia’s participation in the championship,” Slovak Football Association president Ján Kováčik told the Economic Daily. According to this arrangement, coach Kozák and his team would receive just under 2.7 million euros from the guaranteed amount. Including the footballers who took part in the qualifiers, this involves about 40 people. Naturally, the most-used players will receive more than a masseur or assistant coach. According to the Economic Daily’s calculations, key players in the qualification such as goalkeeper Matúš Kozáčik, Martin Škrtel, Marek Hamšík, and Tomáš Hubočan should receive over 100,000 euros each. “The distribution of bonuses is fully within the competence of coach Kozák and his team,” confirmed Slovak Football Association spokesman Juraj Čurný. According to his boss and association president Ján Kováčik, the federation plans to use part of the bonus to improve football infrastructure in Slovakia.

According to data provided by František Laurinec, UEFA will distribute a record 313 million euros to national teams at the European Championship. For comparison, at the previous tournament hosted by Poland and Ukraine, the total was 215 million euros — meaning bonuses have increased by almost 46 percent. “For the first time, the tournament will feature not 16, but 24 national teams. The event is therefore more attractive and, in terms of sponsorship revenue, very strong,” said Laurinec, who believes Slovakia will not be missing from next year’s football festival in France.

In addition to being more appealing to sponsors, the larger number of participants also means more television broadcasts and more tickets sold for individual matches. “Bonuses for participants in the championship are closely linked to sponsor interest in the event. And the fact that the tournament will feature eight more teams than in the past makes the European Championship even more attractive,” sports analyst and football agent Jozef Tokos told the Economic Daily.