Matt Scott reveals that Arsenal will be richly rewarded for being the first London club to reach the Champions League final

Arsenal's progression last night to a first ever Champions League final will be worth a minimum £19.9 million to Arsene Wenger's team. That figure may reach £21.7 million if they beat Barcelona or Milan in Paris on May 17th.

The Gunners became the first London club to appear in the European Cup final and will be richly rewarded for doing so.

Their run in the competition this season, including a £9.2 million share of the "market pool" for television rights, had already yielded them £17.2 million before last night's match sealed the semi-final tie against Villarreal in triumph.

Arsenal are still not guaranteed to compete in the competition next season and must hope they can overhaul Tottenham, four points above them in the Premiership's fourth place, or win in next month's final to secure entry.

However, the near-£20 million dividend this season's Champions League campaign has produced is equivalent to two first-round exits, since Manchester United earned only £9.8 million for their appearance, which ended in the group stage.

Arsenal paid £45.515 million in debt service and capital repayment in the financial year ended May 2004 on the loans with which they undertook their near-£400 million Emirates Stadium project.

That figure is not believed to have greatly diminished in the succeeding 24 months.

Indeed, even if they become European champions, Arsenal's ability to cash in on the commercial implications of their status is restricted by the long-term deals they already have in place.

The £5.5 million per year being paid by Emirates for a shirt-sponsorship deal beginning next season is already well below the market rate and becomes even better value for money if Arsenal succeed against Milan or Barcelona next month.

However, on their move to the Ashburton Grove site in August the club will find it easier to negotiate a refinancing package with their bankers, allowing more of the £32 million increase in gate revenues the new stadium will generate to go towards team building.

That, and the Champions League riches of this season, will be sufficient to persuade those financiers that failure to qualify for the competition next season would not be a disaster for their business plan.

Whether their captain Thierry Henry will be so easily convinced should the Gunners slip against Barcelona, though, is more difficult to gauge.

Although he has pledged to make a decision on his long-term future before the World Cup, the France international has not yet extended his contract to remain at Arsenal.

That delay is expected to make him the most coveted player in the global transfer market next month, with Real Madrid and Barcelona intending to set up an auction for his services.

Madrid are reportedly willing to offer the Premiership's top scorer £154,000 a week, £4,000 a week less than Ronaldinho earns at Camp Nou, a sum with which Arsenal are unlikely to be able to compete.

Much may rest on events in the final at the Stade de France on May 17th.

It is not even certain that Henry will extend his stay with Arsenal beyond its six seasons should they become champions of Europe.

It is known that Patrick Vieira regretted his decision to remain at Highbury when he had the opportunity to quit the Premiership after the Gunners' "invincible" season of 2003-2004.

At no point has Henry made his deliberations public but not appearing in Europe's premier competition to showcase his talents would hardly aid Arsenal's cause as they seek to persuade him to stay.

The 28-year-old has 41 Champions League goals in his career, two fewer than the all-time leader, Andriy Shevchenko.

For one who is as motivated by glory as by money, that could be a telling factor for Henry as he ruminates on his future.

"Today was about desire and commitment; you didn't see much of me up front but we worked hard," said Henry.

Arsenal hope that desire will keep him in England.