The potential earnings for Hearts as a result of their UEFA Conference League participation this year are as follows.
On match day one of the European competition, Hearts head to Azerbaijan to take on Dinamo Minsk, marking the start of their Conference League odyssey.
After Saturday’s dramatic stalemate with Ross County, the managerless Jambos will be led by temporary manager Liam Fox as they attempt to defeat the Belarussian team and snap an 11-game losing streak.
The Gorgie team plummeted into the newly formed Conference League after losing to Viktoria Plzen in the Europa League qualifiers earlier in the season. In the upcoming weeks and months, Tynecastle will play host to teams like FC Petrocub Hîncești, Omonoia, and Heidenheim.
In addition, the Edinburgh team will travel to Copenhagen and Cercle Brugge during the league stage of the competition.
Hearts will be the only team from the Scottish Premiership competing in the tournament as Kilmarnock and St Mirren were eliminated in the qualifying round. Hearts’ primary goal will be to secure some encouraging wins following a dismal start to the season.
An explanation of the Conference League format
Like the Europa League and the UEFA Champions League, the Conference League has a completely new format for the 24/25 campaign.
Instead of being divided into separate groups, teams will now play a total of six games—three at home and three away—in a 36-team league. Teams ranked ninth through twenty-four place will compete in the knockout round play-offs to secure a position in the final sixteen, while the top eight clubs at the conclusion of the league season go directly to the round of 16. Teams that finish worse than 25th will not be allowed to compete. From the knockout round to the championship match, all ties are split into two legs.
Hearts Conference League fixture dates
Oct 3: Dinamo Minsk (A) – 5.45pm
Oct 24: Omonoia (H) – 5.45pm
Nov 7: Heidenheim (H) – 8pm
Nov 28: Cercle Brugge (A) – 5.45pm
Dec 12: Copenhagen (A) – 5.45pm
Dec 19: Petroclub (H) – 5.45pm
Conference League prize money – how much will Hearts earn from playing in the Conference League
First and foremost, Hearts and the other 35 clubs that have qualified for the league phase of the competition can expect to receive an allocation of €3.17m, which will be split split into a down-payment of €3.05m (£2.6m) and a balance of €120k (£100,800).
Hearts will earn a performance related bonus, which will be paid for each match in the League Phase: €400,000 (£335,940) per win and €133k (£111,700) per draw, with £0 for a defeat. This is less than what they would have could have earned had they made it through the Europa League qualifiers, which would have saw them earn €450,000 (£377,901) per win and €150,000 (£584k) per draw.
Should Hearts end the league phase in any of the top eight positions, they will receive an additional €400k (£336k) bonus. If they are ranked between ninth and 16th will receive €200k (£252k).
If they qualify for the last 16 and/or further knockout phases of the Conference League, they will earn:
Clubs that qualify for the knockout stages of the Conference League can expect to receive the following
- Qualification for the knockout round play-offs: €200k (£168,167) per club
- Qualification for the round of 16: €800k (£672,669) per club
- Qualification for the quarter-finals: €1.3m (£1,093,144) per club
- Qualification for the semi-finals: €2.5m (£2,102,200) per club
- Qualification for the final: €4m (£3,363,029) per club
