Real Madrid offered €500,000 bonus to players to beat Bayern Munich and qualify for CL semi-final

Real Madrid offered €500,000 bonus to players to beat Bayern Munich and qualify for CL semi-final

The UEFA Champions League quarter-final second leg against Bayern Munich in Germany had been treated internally almost like a final at Real Madrid.

It was the club’s last real lifeline in a season that had already begun slipping away, and inside Valdebebas the sense was clear: progression in the Champions League was no longer just important, it was essential.

Hefty bonus offered

As such, Jose Felix Diaz of AS reports that Florentino Perez and the Real Madrid board offered each player a gross bonus of €500,000 if they managed to beat Bayern Munich and secure qualification for the Champions League semi-finals.

It was an extraordinary incentive, especially considering that this type of match-by-match reward structure had largely disappeared at the club in recent years.

Historically, Real Madrid had often used targeted bonuses to motivate players before decisive fixtures. Over time, however, the system evolved towards collective season objectives rather than individual match rewards.

Real Madrid lost to Bayern Munich in the CL quarter-finals. (Photo by Adam Pretty/Getty Images)

Exceptional circumstances, though, sometimes bring back old methods, and the Bayern tie was clearly viewed as one of those moments.