Millions Kaizer Chiefs will miss after CAF Confederation Cup exit

Kaizer Chiefs are not just feeling the disappointment of their CAF Confederation Cup exit but also counting losses.

Chiefs were knocked out on Friday by Zambian club Red Arrows who beat them 3-2 on post-match penalties following a 1-1 draw on aggregate.

It leaves Chiefs out of continental football without tasting the group stages, which comes with a significant cash reward.

How much will Kaizer Chiefs miss?

While the Glamour Boys made it to the group stage in 2025-26 and just missed out on the quarter-final, they have regressed this season, to exit at the preliminary round.

The Soweto giants will therefore take home just $100,000 (R1.6 million) which teams knocked out of the competition at the preliminary round will be awarded.

Chiefs will therefore miss out on at least $400,000 (R6.6 million) which all teams in the Confederation Cup group stages will be awarded by the Confederation of African Football.

Pressure ahead of Carling Knockout

It shows the full scale of cup exits for Chiefs, who had also been knocked out of the MTN8 at the quarter-final, and adds pressure on coach Fernando da Cruz ahead of his team’s Carling Knockout Round of 16 tie against TS Galaxy on Tuesday.

Another elimination would leave the club with only the Nedbank Cup to contest given the league looks to be out of reach as they are nine points behind leaders Mamelodi Sundowns, even if they have a match in hand.

Cash incentives come in handy for clubs when it comes to operations and also boosts their transfer kitty and Chiefs’ miss could also have an impact on their recruitment.