Why qualifying for Europe would be an era-defining experience for Sheffield United

Entry into the competition proper is worth a basic £15.2m to those taking part in the group stages of UEFA’s flagship club competition, with every win triggering further awards of £2.7m rising to £9.5m in the first round of knockout games.

This compares to United’s estimated £4.6m share of the money the PL distributed to teams in the second tier of English football nearly 12 months ago and, when potential commercial opportunities are also taken in consideration, explains why manager Chris Wilder is determined to ensure his squad remains focused during the enforced break in the fixture calendar to help the fight against coronavirus.

Every CL draw before the last 16 phase attracts prize money of £900,000.

"We're not even thinking about anything other than the next challenge that's right in front of us," Wilder said recently. "We're in the picture but nothing else."

Seventh in the table before all matches across England were postponed until at least the end of April, United, five points behind fourth-placed Chelsea and with a game in hand, are also in the quarter-finals of the FA Cup with the eventual winners being parachuted into the Europa League.

Wilder’s squad can also secure a place in this tournament via their PL ranking and, although the rewards for doing so would be significantly smaller, United know both their bank balance and importantly their profile would benefit.

Teams taking part in the EL are immediately handed a sum of £2.9m according to most recent calculations, with wins and draws attracting figures of £570,000 and £190,000.

United were awarded £360,000 when they beat Reading in the fifth round of the FA Cup earlier this month. That result saw them set-up a meeting with Arsenal in the last eight, with the victors set to pocket £720,000. The losing semi-finalists are awarded £900,000 each, with a win worth £1.8m; the same amount received by the losing finalists.