Barcelona first team to spend half-a-billion euros on wages - study

FILE PHOTO: Soccer Football - La Liga Santander - FC Barcelona v Eibar - Camp Nou, Barcelona, Spain - January 13, 2019 Barcelona's Luis Suarez celebrates scoring their third goal with Lionel Messi and Philippe Coutinho REUTERS/Albert Gea/File Photo

MADRID (Reuters) - La Liga champions Barcelona became the first soccer team to spend over half a billion euros in wages after their staff costs shot up by 42 percent over the past year, according to a study by KPMG.

KPMG's Football Benchmark study analysed the squads and finances of the respective champions of Europe's top eight leagues.