Both Marcus Rashford and André Onana have seen their weekly wages jump by 25% following United’s qualification for the Champions League despite neither player kicking a ball for the Red Devils last season.
This contractual loophole has left Old Trafford executives wrestling with inflated wage packets that are actively sabotaging efforts to permanently offload the high-earning duo. The source of the problem stems from “legacy contracts” drawn up before the club overhauled its wage policy. Under United’s previous structure, squad members were granted an automatic 25% wage increase whenever Champions League qualification was secured. Crucially, these older deals contained no minimum appearance threshold.
Marcus Rashford Spent the 2025–26 season on loan at Barcelona. His salary catapulted back above £300,000 per week, adding an extra £4M+ per year to United’s wage bill for a player they are actively trying to sell on the other hand, André Onana: Spent last season on loan in Turkey with Trabzonspor. His base pay jumped from £120,000 per week to £150,000 per week, drastically reducing United’s leverage in negotiating loan fee splits or permanent transfers.
Because United finished 3rd in the Premier League to punch their ticket back to Europe’s elite competition, both players received the financial reward without making a single contribution on the pitch during the campaign.
The silver lining for Old Trafford faithful is that the current regime has already locked down a fix for future contracts. Under the club’s revamped policy, any new signee or extending player must participate in at least 60% of total competitive minutes during the season to trigger their Champions League bonus. (For instance, Joshua Zirkzee missed out on a pay rise this summer after failing to meet that playing threshold).
However, until the remnants of the old wage structure are fully cleared out, United remain shackled by the past paying elite-tier paychecks to players who are already out the door.
