Marcus Rashford is set for a sizeable increase on his wages with a clause in his contract activated after Manchester United qualified for the Champions League
Manchester United have been forced to pay Marcus Rashford £4million because of a Champions League clause in the contract he signed in 2023. After finishing third in the Premier League, United will be back amongst Europe’s elite and as a result Rashford will get a 25 per cent increase on his wages despite playing no minutes in the last campaign.
That is because of an automatic bonus earned through Champions League qualification which was in all deals agreed before the start of 2024. Mason Mount and Andre Onana, who signed in the previous summer, subsequently saw the term included in their deals and thus both players have also received a top-up to their wages.
Like Rashford, who was on loan at Barcelona, Onana did not play one minute for United in the 2025/26 campaign. At the very least his wages are being covered by Trabzonspor, though this loan is far less financially beneficial for United due to the salary increase in comparison to last season’s temporary switch to Turkiye.
Mount on the other hand, was at Old Trafford last season and played just over 1,000 minutes so did at least contribute and has somewhat earned his pay rise that is in excess of £1million.
However, had he joined 12 months later, that would not have been enough to get the wage increase with United implementing a rule whereby only players that featured for over 2,000 minutes get rewarded with a 25 per cent increase, as per The Telegraph.
The likes of Bruno Fernandes, Matheus Cunha and Luke Shaw are eligible for the bonus with some players having already seen their wages increase after failing to qualify for any form of European football two seasons ago saw them go down.
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With Rashford raking in approximately £16million annually, United’s resurgence in top-tier European football means he’ll pocket an additional £4million on top of his weekly earnings which now look set to be back over £300,000.
Both Rashford and Onana have been available for a permanent transfer in the past, but United have encountered difficulties offloading either, largely due to their hefty salaries and the bonuses stipulated in their contracts.
Despite shining at Barcelona, who decided against a permanent deal for financial reasons, this is likely why United were so keen to offload Rashford. However, a significant change of heart appears to have taken place, with it now seeming more probable that he will remain at Old Trafford.
Given the unnecessary expenditure, United’s summer plans are being affected, with deals for prime targets deemed too costly. The club managed to secure savvy deals for Youri Tielemans and Andrey Santos but missed out on signing Elliot Anderson and Mateus Fernandes.