(Credit: Imago)

James Murray

Wed 13 May 2026 10:09, UK

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Arsenal’s wage bill is expected to reach around £400million following their success in the Champions League this season. 

That is according to former Manchester City financial adviser Stefan Borson, who exclusively told Football Insider the Gunners will incur “enormous costs” after reaching the final of the elite European club competition.

Arsenal secured a 2-1 victory on aggregate over Atletico Madrid in the semi-finals to set up a showdown against PSG at the Puskas Arena in Budapest later this month.

Meanwhile, Mikel Arteta’s side are also on course to win the Premier League heading into the final two games of the season.

If they can win both competitions, that would provide a significant boost to Arsenal’s financial situation as they look to increase their revenue, which stood at £691m last season. 

Why Arsenal are set for ‘amazing’ financial boost

Arsenal have banked around £122m in prize money following their exploits in the Champions League this season. 

If they can get their hands on the trophy, that would add a further £5.6m to their total. 

Speaking exclusively to Football Insider, Borson discussed whether Arsenal will post a new club-record revenue following their performances this season. 

“They’ll be close,” said Borson.

“Clearly, if you win the Champions League, or get to the final, then compared to a season where you don’t, you’re going to be very significantly ahead.

“They’ve almost maxed out the entire competition, given what they’ve done in the first phase and the number of wins that they got.

“Their Uefa pillar revenue is very strong, so it’s going to be an amazing amount of money that’s coming through the Champions League at the top line.” 

How Arsenal’s wage bill will increase this season

Borson insisted Arsenal’s wage bill will increase this season, having stood at £347m in 2024-25.

“The things that offset their earnings are the enormous costs in terms of taking the club to all of these places,” said Borson.

“It’s not cheap to run a campaign in European competition, so you have significant cost and of course you’ve got bonuses and Champions League wages. 

“Their wage bill will be very substantially higher than last year. It will be in the region of £400m this year, which will be ballpark approaching where Liverpool, City, Bayern Munich and all of the teams that they’re coming up against in European competition are at. 

“There is a lot of revenue, but also a lot of cost.”