Stan Kroenke set for £18m Europa League windfall after Arsenal draw Sporting CP in round of 16

Arsenal have more than pride at stake in their Europa League campaign. After a remarkable 4-0 win over Midtjylland in the second leg in the round of 16 against Sporting CP, it’s a reunion draw.

Former right-back Hector Bellerin will face the side he has spent more than a decade with, while Fabio Vieira will immediately return to the stadium he left over the summer. However, given the competition’s new format, it is one of the strongest pools of teams left at this stage of the competition and there will be no room for mercy.

The Europa League could feel like a distraction for Arsenal due to their unexpected Premier League title hunt. At the start of the season, a win was perhaps seen as more likely to take the competition into the Champions League than finishing in the top four.

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That appears to be all but sewn up now, meaning it’s something of a free kick for Mikel Arteta and his men in Europe for the remainder of the season. Having previously only won the Cup Winners’ Cup in Europe – if you exclude the 1970 Inter-Cities Fairs Cup – there is an incentive from that aspect and makes an already outstanding season even better.

Given the strength of the season so far and the pressure that is being placed on them to win the title, it might be disappointing if there is no trophy to be won in May. The Europa League is a chance to secure that title, but it could also serve as more for Stan Kroenke.

The monetary gain from gaining European relationships is lucrative. Arsenal have already earned £2.86m in the group stage. At £572,000 per group stage win, that was a near-perfect bonus for the club.

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What’s more, Arsenal will pocket an extra £1.1million just to play in the round of 16. However, this is not their ultimate goal. A further £1.6million is to be paid for a place in the quarter-finals. It goes up again from there at £2.5million per semi-finalist. Just reaching the final nets £4.2m, while winning earns £7.8m.