Rashford contract clause triggered by Champions League return
Marcus Rashford is set to pocket an extra £4million if he stays at Manchester United due to a clause in his contract which has been activated because the club are back in the Champions League. The England international is among three players that can receive such a windfall with his current deal signed before United changed the structure of bonuses in contracts.
Prior to the arrival of Sir Jim Ratcliffe, players would automatically receive a 25 per cent wage increase upon Champions League football being secured. Such terms were included in the sizeable long-term deals signed by Mason Mount and Andre Onana in the summer of 2023, which was exactly when Rashford penned a new five-year deal.
United failing to play in Europe last season resulted in pay cuts but Champions League football for the new campaign has seen them go back up. For Rashford and Mount, who are still at the club, it is particularly beneficial because of the clause in their legacy contracts.
The chance for a salary increase still exists in United deals for first-team players but they now have to earn it, as per The Telegraph, which is done through playing in over 60 per cent of the minutes in the proceeding campaign. That requires players to have been on the pitch in the Premier League for just over 2,000 minutes.
Rashford and Onana spent the campaign on loan elsewhere while Mount played just over half of the total required, but it is something that none of the trio have to worry about when it comes to receiving bonuses.
With Rashford taking in roughly £16million per-year, United's return to elite European football means he will be receiving an extra £4million on top of his weekly wage. United are also being forced to pay Mount in excess of £1m annually but thankfully Onana's wages for the season are being covered entirely by Trabzonspor and as such no pay rise is coming his way.
Both Rashford and the latter have been made available for permanent transfer but United have had problems selling either, largely due to their wages and the bonus in their contracts. Despite impressing at Barcelona, who opted against signing him permanently for financial reasons, that is likely why United were so eager to sell Rashford.
A significant U-turn has since been completed on that stance, however, with it now looking more likely he will stay at Old Trafford. Given the unnecessary outlay, United's summer plans are being impacted with deals for top targets deemed too expensive. The club were able to strike clever deals for Youri Tielemans and Andrey Santos but missed out on signing Elliot Anderson and Mateus Fernandes.
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