In 2005 it was almost done with the relatively small English professional club Exeter City. Years of financial and sporting malaise brought “The Grecians” to the brink of bankruptcy. Then a small miracle happened: the great Manchester United came.

The particularly fortunate draw for the third round of the FA Cup, England’s most important cup tournament, saved Exeter. The doubles encounter with United netted more than £1.5m. All debts were gone in one fell swoop – despite the shutdown.

Participation in a national cup tournament can therefore be very lucrative for smaller clubs. The necessary (prize) money can also be earned in the KNVB Cup, the first round of which is scheduled for this week. Maybe not as much as in England, but still.

Watch below the report presented by presenter Tom Egbers in Exeter in 2005 on the special meeting of Giggs, Scholes and Cristiano Ronaldo with Manchester United:

The income from the cup is a nice extra, especially for the participating amateur clubs. If they have drawn a professional club, they play a home game in the first round. And this is an important detail.

In the first and second round, all proceeds from the cup games benefit the home club. The visiting club is only entitled to a “visitor’s flat rate” from the KNVB football association in the amount of 2,500 euros.

The Kozak Boys are hoping for 25,000 to 30,000 euros from the home game against Vitesse on Wednesday. The second division club sells special packages to sponsors and welcomes around a thousand additional spectators compared to an average competitive match.

The expected proceeds from meeting Vitesse is not yet the grand prize. The amount corresponds to about three percent of the total budget. “It’s only really fun when we go one round,” says Kozak Boys chairman Dick Hoogendoorn.

Competitive premiums increase

From that moment on, the competition rewards also take on more serious forms. Where qualifying for the first round brings 12,500 euros, there is an additional 30,000 euros for a win. A place in the round of sixteen is good for another 50,000 euros.

In this phase of the cup tournament (from the round of 16), the proceeds from the games not only benefit the home club, but are shared with the guests.

That’s why Spakenburg treasurer opened the champagne when the 2020 round of 16 draw resulted in an away game against Ajax. It is estimated that this cup night in a sold-out Johan Cruijff Arena brought in at least two hundred thousand for the amateur club.

life is extra money

For an additional plus on the annual account, the participants in the cup tournament are dependent on the choice of the TV rights holder ESPN. After all, clubs whose games are broadcast live collect additional money.

The KNVB differentiates between two scenarios. The first column (live fee 1) applies to clubs whose game is broadcast on the open network for at least 45 minutes. The second (live fee 2) applies if at least 45 minutes can be seen on the pay channel.

For (amateur) clubs playing at home, there are often costs for the repair of all facilities on top of the game bonuses and any live fees. The costs of the arbitration and the travel and subsistence expenses of the visiting club are also borne by the home club.

Little money for big clubs

For the big clubs, the income from the KNVB Cup is often a drop in the bucket. A (large) part of the money has to be paid for winning bonuses for players.

In the 2018/2019 season, cup winners Ajax decided to pay part of the ticket price for the fans who traveled to De Kuip for the final. The Amsterdam club then had practically nothing left of the prize money earned by beating Willem II.