Manchester United still the world's richest football club

Manchester United still the world’s richest football club

19 April 2012 No Comment

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Manchester United continue to top the Forbes list as the most valuable football club in the world but Real Madrid are gaining ground.

The rankings compiled each year by Forbes, estimate Manchester United, which won the Premier League and reached the Champions League Final in 2011, are worth £1.4bn ($2.24bn), 20% more than last year.

Arsenal are fourth on the list, worth £800m, behind Real Madrid (£1.17bn) and Barcelona (£816m) but just ahead of Bayern Munich (£766m).

United’s global fan base of some 330 million helps make it the most valuable team in any sport, worth $385 million more than both Major League Baseball’s New York Yankees and the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League.

During the 2010-11 season, Manchester United reaped $192m in broadcasting revenue, 22% higher than the previous season. The club’s run last year to the final of the Champions League, where it lost to Barcelona, commanded a $80 million payout from UEFA.

The second-most valuable team, Real Madrid, is closing in fast on Manchester United receiving a $59 million payout for reaching the semi-finals of the 2011 Champions League and is now worth $1.88 billion, 29% more than last year.

Real Madrid posted the highest operating income of the top 20, $214 million, $36 million more than second-best Manchester United. Real Madrid’s 2011 commercial revenue of $250 million, powered by sponsorships with Adidas, Emerites Airlines and Bwin, was second only to Bayern Munich.

Also gaining a lot of ground on Manchester United is Barcelona, the winner of last year’s Champions League which has made it to the final four of the tournament this year.

Barcelona, led by the world’s greatest striker, Lionel Messi, is worth $1.31 billion, a 34% increase from last year. Barcelona pulled in $77 million in Champions League distributions and the team’s broadcasting revenue of $266 million in 2011 was the most of any team. Barcelona’s revenue and value should increase again next year as it enjoys its first full year of its sponsorship deal with the Qatar Foundation, which is worth an average of $44 million a year through the 2015-16 season.

Bayern Munich finished third in the Bundesliga and was ousted in the first knockout round of the 2011 Champions League, the team was still first in commercial revenue, with $258 million. Bayern pulls in $36 million a year from its long-term sponsorship deal with Adidas and has been having talks with Gazprom, the Russian energy company. Forbes value Bayern Munich at $1.24 billion, 18% more than last year.

“Not only do these teams reap direct revenue from finishing near the top of their domestic leagues and tournament competition, but they also generate rich sponsorship and merchandise deals from the powerful brands they have built through success on the pitch over time,” Forbes said.

“During the 2011 season the UEFA Champions League, the world’s richest annual soccer competition, dolled out a total of $1.14bn to the 32 teams that qualified for the group stage, 23 per cent more than the previous year. A 25 per cent increase in UEFA’s broadcasting revenue, to $1.28bn, fueled the increase.”

UEFA has plans to sell the television rights for international games for Europe’s top teams collectively beginning in 2014 and believes selling rights on pan-European basis can increase revenue over 60%.

Forbes rich list

1. Manchester United – $2.235bn (£1.396bn)
2. Real Madrid – $1.877bn (£1.17bn)
3. Barcelona – $1.307bn (£816m)
4. Arsenal – $1.292bn (£807m)
5. Bayern Munich – $1.235bn (£770m)
6. AC Milan – $989m (£615m)
7. Chelsea – $761m (£473m)
8. Liverpool – $619m (£385m)
9. Juventus – $591m (£367m)
10. Schalke 04 – $587m (£365m)
11. Tottenham Hotspur -$564m (£351m)
13. Manchester City – $443m (£275m)