A number of Manchester United players will reportedly see their wages drop by as much as 25% next season following the club's failure to qualify for the Champions League.
The Red Devils' slim top-four hopes were ended once and for all on Saturday when a 4-0 defeat to Brighton & Hove Albion left them five points adrift of the Champions League places with only one game of their season remaining.
The loss, which interim boss Ralf Rangnick described as "terrible" and "humiliating", also means that Man United are now guaranteed to end the campaign with their lowest-ever points tally in the Premier League era.
The Daily Mail reports that the structure of the players' contracts at Old Trafford means that the playing staff will see their wages cut as a result of their failure to qualify for Europe's premier club competition.
Missing out on a place in the Champions League has a significant knock-on effect on finances, with the Europa League or Europa Conference League bringing with it substantially lower prize money and broadcast revenue.
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The winners of the Champions League could stand to earn up to £71.66m for their effort, whereas the Europa League winners could earn a maximum of £16.22m from prize money.
To protect against that, the three-time European champions built clauses into their contracts to slash wages by up to a quarter in the event that they fail to finish in the top four, or qualify for the Champions League via other means.
Five-time Ballon d'Or winner Cristiano Ronaldo will be among the players affected by the clause, seeing his weekly wage potentially drop from £385,000 to around £288,000.
Such a drop would see the 37-year-old earning just over half the £500,000-a-week he was pocketing at Juventus last season.
Other big-earners at Manchester United, such as goalkeeper David de Gea, could also see their wages cut by almost £100,000 per week.
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Players are able to negotiate a smaller pay cut in such an event, but the clauses have been mentioned in the club's annual financial results.
As things stand, the Red Devils are due to qualify for the Europa League group stages next season, with a sixth-placed finish being enough courtesy of the FA Cup final being contested between two teams that have already qualified for Europe in Liverpool and Chelsea.
Rangnick's side are six points clear of seventh-placed West Ham United, but the Hammers have two games in hand and could still catch Man United, sending the 20-time English champions into the Europa Conference League instead.
The four goals Man United shipped against Brighton mean that they have now conceded 56 goals this term - their most ever in a single Premier League season.
The Red Devils find themselves 25 points adrift of leading duo Liverpool and Manchester City, having played two games more than Liverpool and three more than Man City.
Rangnick's final game in interim charge will come away to Crystal Palace on May 22, after which incoming boss Erik ten Hag will take the reins.
Barney Corkhill
