How much money Chelsea have made from Club World Cup as Enzo Maresca transfer fund boosted

Chelsea are back in action on Saturday night as they take on Benfica in the last 16 of the Club World Cup.

The Blues face the Portuguese outfit in Charlotte, North Carolina, and they will know before kick-off who they will face in the quarter-finals with a win, with the first last-16 encounter between Palmeiras and Botafogo taking place before their clash.

Chelsea will be favourites to beat Benfica despite finishing secnod in their group and the Portuguese side winning theirs that included Bayern Munich.

And there are big financial rewards avaialbe should they progress further in the competition, with just under £100 million up for grabs if they manage to go all the way and lift the trophy.

Enzo Maresca’s transfer budget – if the money goes straight back into the club to strengthen the squad – has already been boosted considerably.

There was at least £9.4m for every European club taking part in the competition, with Chelsea expecting to earn considerably more than that based on sporting and commercial criteria, with the potential to earn as much as £27.8m.

Every group win in the tournament is worth £1.46m, so with two under their belt the Blues earned £2.92m. There was also a £5.47m payment for making it through to the last 16 of the tournament in the States.

That means Chelsea have already pocketed at least £17.79m from their participation in the tournament. There is another £9.56m, which means they would only need to beat Benfica for Liam Delap’s transfer fee from Ipswich to have paid for itself already.

The Blues have been linked with signing another winger this summer, with the likes of Jamie Gittens and Alejandro Garnacho tipped to sign. Chelsea have been haggling over the price for Gittens, but another few wins in the Club World Cup would certainly help boost the coffers for a renewed effort to sign the Borussia Dortmund ace.