€1.83b spent, just one final - PSG have failed to turn financial dominace into European success

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If one game was to sum up Paris Saint-Germain's frustrating start to this season's Champions League group stage it would likely be Tuesday night's 1-1 draw with Newcastle. Despite a flurry of chances in the first half from the home side, it was the Premier League club that struck first in the 24th minute, when Alexander Isak tapped home a close-range rebound following a poor save from Gianluigi Donnarumma. Despite registering 31 attempts on goal, the Ligue 1 giants were forced to rely on a penalty call in stoppage time and Kylian Mbappé converting from the spot to spare their blushes. 

The result could have undoubtedly been worse, but a single point from this week's clash now means that PSG go into the final match day against Borussia Dortmund needing to avoid defeat to ensure their passage to the knock-out rounds of the continental competition. In what many have labelled as the "Group of Death", Luis Enrique's side have looked far from composed and anything but genuine contenders for this season's European title. A staggering thought, considering how much money the French giants have spent in recent years. 

How much have PSG spent under QSI?

As is well known in European football, Qatar Sports Investments bought a controlling stake in PSG in 2012 and since then they’ve done their best to ensure that the French giants have played a pivotal role in the transfer window. Indeed, over the course of the last 11 years, the Parisian side have spent €1.83 billion on transfer fees. That in itself means that only three clubs in all of European football have spent more on players since QSI bought PSG. When we look at the club’s net spend in the transfer window, the figure stands at €1.11b. Which also places the Ligue 1 club in fourth place and makes it clear that having spent such remarkable sums in the transfer window - and untold fortunes on wages - that they should be challenging for the Champions League each and every season.

How well have PSG performed in the Champions League under QSI?

However, that has been far from the case. Despite aforementioned fees paid in the transfer window and the likes of Neymar, Lionel Messi and Mbappé moving to the club in that time, PSG have severely underperformed when it comes to challenging the established hierarchy of European football over the past 11 years. Since QSI bought the club, PSG have reached the quarter-finals on four occasions, the semi-finals once and a final in 2020, where they lost 1-0 to Bayern Munich. However, most worryingly, the club have failed to get beyond the Last 16 in five of the last 11 seasons under QSI ownership.

Indeed, when we compare PSG’s performances in the competition to the other big hitters in European football it really underlines how poor the club’s return for their money has been on the pitch. Since 2012 Real Madrid have reached four finals, Liverpool have reached three and Manchester City, Juventus and Bayern have all reached two. Of all the clubs mentioned, only Man City have outspent their French counterparts in the transfer window. In fact, the combined net spend of Bayern, Juventus and Madrid is only €50m off PSG’s in that time period. As such, the only club that can perhaps come close to spending as much money as PSG without anything to show for it are Manchester United. Who, admittedly, have a much harder task of qualifying for the competition each year. No matter which way you look at it, the French side have spent a fortune on players since 2012 and had very little success in Europe to show for it.