GOAL!! Here Are The World’s Most Valuable Soccer Clubs
With soccer being the most popular sport in the world, bringing in 3.5 billion fans, the teams involved have tremendous value. Not only that, but players like Lionel Messi and Paul Pogba also help increase the worth of the clubs. The financial services firm Deloitte released its Football Money League, ranking the teams that brought in the most revenue. The report says that the combined revenues from this year’s top-earning teams saw a six percent growth ($9.42 billion), which is a world record.
West Ham United – $224.5 Million
West Ham United kicks things off coming in at $224.5 million. Based in Stratford, East London, West Ham United competes in the Premier League. Their former stadium used to be the Boleyn Ground, but have since moved to the London Stadium in 2016.
West Ham United didn’t compete in any UEFA matches in 2018, so the majority of the club’s revenue came from broadcasting deals. Manager Manuel Pellegrini has an excellent roster on his hands to work with that includes the likes of Declan Rise and Issa Diop.
Newcastle United – $228.6 Million
The Newcastle United Magpies operate under owner Mike Ashley and play in St. James Park. The Magpies have an impressive accolade to their name, and that’s having won the ninth-most elite honors among English football clubs.
As far as their earnings go ($228.6 million), Newcastle United managed to more than double what they brought in from the previous year, which was up by $113.2 million since 2017. That’s an incredible margin to have in revenue after a year.
AC Milan – $235.6 Million)
Associazione Calcio Milan or AC Milan entered the fray in 1899. Based in Milan, Italy, AC Milan has Marco Giampaolo as their manager. Overall, they’ve won the second-most major honors out of football clubs in Italy.
In 2018, the club made it through to the Round of 16 stage in the UEFA Europa League. Not only that, but they brought in an average of 51,472 fans to home matches. Lastly, AC Milan also finished sixth in the Serie A, the top flight of Italian football.
Everton FC – $241.4 Million
The Everton Football Club, based in Walton, Liverpool, competes in the Premier League. Managed by Marco Silva, the team plays in Goodison Park. How did Everton earn their large sum of cash?
Well, a large portion of their revenue (75%) came from broadcasting deals. That helped them tremendously after they fell out of the UEFA Europa League in the group stage. The Dogs of War have also won the seventh-most elite honors among English football clubs.
FC Schalke 04 – $276.5 Million
FC Schalke 04 had a pretty solid year bringing in $276.5 million. The Royal Blues receive 44% of their revenue ($120.8 million) from commercial deals, with Gazprom acting as their shirt sponsor.
They get the “04” in their name from the year of their formation, which was 1904. Manager David Wagner has the pleasure of having players like Breel Embolo and Sebastian Rudy on his North Rhine-Westphalia team. Fans can catch them play their home games at VELTINS-Arena.
AS Roma – $283.6 Million
AS Roma, or Associazione Sportiva Roma, is an Italian club based in Rome. They’ve played in the top-tier of Italian soccer their whole existence, except for 1951-52. That means they’ve had ample amount of time to boost their value, and, boy did they ever.
On average, the team ropes in 37,683 fans for every home game. That could be due to the stellar season they had in which they finished third in Serie A and made it to the UEFA Champions League semi-final.
Inter Milan – $318.5 Million
Here we are, the first team to crack $300 million — Inter Milan. The base for this Italian club is in Milan, Lombardy. Out of every football club in Italy, Inter Milan has the third most honors (39).
This club’s monetary value shot up 11% in only one year! A little more than half of their revenue came from commercial deals and money from their technical kit supplier Nike. Inter Milan’s shirt sponsor, Pirelli, also helped a ton in increasing Milan’s revenue.
Atletico Madrid – $345.3 Million
From 2017 to 2018, Atletico Madrid saw a 12% increase in revenue. The Spanish football club based in Madrid plays in La Liga, the top professional football division of the Spanish league. Their stadium has a capacity of 67,703, and the team brings in 55,477 fans on average to their home games.
This is the third largest club in Spain behind two others that we’ll get to later. Atletico Madrid continues to see annual growth and doesn’t look like they’ll be slowing down, especially since winning the UEFA Europa League.
Borussia Dortmund – $360 Million
The fascinating thing about Borussia Dortmund is that they lost one percent value from the previous year, but they’re still pretty high on the list. It could be thanks to them being one of the more popular clubs in the Bundesliga.
They attracted 79,864 fans on average to their home games at Signal Iduna Park. With sponsorships from Evonik (shirt) and Puma (kit supplier), they’re in good hands as long as they stay competitive. Borussia Dortmund’s value should only increase from here.
Juventus FC – $447 Million
With the addition of all-world talent Cristiano Ronaldo, Juventas saw their value rise three percent in one year. Juventas FC is the most successful team in Italy in the modern era as well, so adding a star like Ronaldo bodes well for them.
The previous year, the club won the Serie A league and made it the quarterfinals of the UEFA Champions League. If they continue to have good fortune, they should rise on this list in the future.
Tottenham Hotspur – $485.6 Million
Now we’re getting to teams that are almost worth half a billion. The North London Tottenham Hotspur club consistently has yearly growth, and they can thank broadcasting deals. Said deals account for 53% of their latest revenue profile.
Managed by Mauricio Pochettino, the Spurs have won the fifth most honors among English football teams. The team had to play in Wembley Stadium temporarily, so they saw their match day cash rise significantly, boosting average fans to 70,642.
Arsenal FC – $497.9 Million
One of the most popular teams across all sports, the Islington, London based team has the ninth-highest home attendance record out of all English clubs. Surprisingly, revenue is down a tad, but that’s due to Arsenal not being the staple of the UEFA Champions League anymore.
They did make it to the UEFA Europa League semi-final in 2018. They finished sixth in the Premier League as well. Still, this team is one of the most profitable for a reason as they have a few of the best players on the pitch.
Chelsea FC – $573.1 Million
Chelsea FC is an English club based in Fulham, London. The team miraculously increased its value by 25% over the past year. Even with their declining standards on the field, they’ve still managed to stay lucrative thanks to some help from their partners.
Chelsea’s contracts with Nike and Yokohama Tyres make up a huge part of their revenue streams. Having Eden Hazard and NGolo Kante on your roster doesn’t hurt either. You can catch a home game at the Stamford Bridge stadium.
Liverpool FC – $582.1 Million
Liverpool FC is an excellent example of how things become better all around when you focus on the game. Getting better on the pitch should be a team’s main priority; that way, they’ll increase wins and overall revenue.
Seeing a jump of 12% in value from the previous year is always a sign that you’re on the right track. After reaching the UEFA Champions League final, management would be clueless to veer off their course now.
Paris Saint-Germain – $614.13 Million
Paris Saint-Germain is one of the most magnificent active clubs right now. Two of the greatest in the world currently sit on the roster in Neymar and Kylian Mbappe. The latter of the two is barely 20-years-old. You can expect many years of dominance ahead, which will equate to more revenue.
The club dominates in Ligue 1. They also won the French division in 2018. The majority of their earnings came from commercial deals in 2018. One of their most lucrative contracts is also with Nike.
Manchester City – $644.4 Million
Not to be confused with Manchester United, Manchester City is a different beast. Overall, Manchester City has the second-highest home attendance record of all English clubs. Last year, however, they only averaged 54,054 fans for home games, and that made up 11% of their revenue.
Much like many of the other top tier teams, City relies on broadcasting deals and commercial contracts to bring in the bulk of their money. With Nike working as their technical kit supplier, they should have funds funneling in nicely for a long time coming.
Bayern Munich – $713.29 Million
Based in Munich, Bavaria, Bayern Munich is a German giant. Not only did they win the German division in 2018, but they also reached the UEFA Champions League semi-final. Mats Hummels, James Rodriguez, and Robert Lewandowski are some tough players to go against on the pitch.
The team brings in 75,354 fans on average to their home games, so that’s a plus for their match day revenue. As long as they continue to have winning ways, they should remain reasonably high on this list.
Manchester United – $755 Million
Manchester United deserves to be towards the end of this list. Based in Old Trafford, Greater Manchester, England, the Red Devils were the most valuable in 2018, but things change in a year. They’re still the wealthiest club in England, so that’s a good thing.
The lion’s share of its revenue from 2018 came from commercial deals. They also have contracts with two of the biggest brands in the world. Adidas supplies the kits, while Chevrolet sponsors their shirts. Oh, and they have Paul Pogba.
FC Barcelona – $782.71 Million
What do Lionel Messi and Luis Suarez have in common? They play for one of the greatest teams of the modern era — FC Barcelona. The Barcelona based football team falls just short of capturing the top spot, but they’re not that far off.
FC Barcelona is the reigning La Liga champion, and they continue to see annual growth in their value. Messi helped make this team well-liked around the globe, helping them reach 63.8 million followers on Instagram, and 102.7 likes on Facebook.
Real Madrid – $851.7 Million
Here we are folks, the moment you’ve been waiting to see. Surely, after seeing FC Barcelona and Manchester United already, it was a safe bet to think Real Madrid would have the top spot. Real Madrid has had a level of success in the UEFA Champions League like no other.
That translates to unprecedented gain in revenue. Madrid won their third straight Champions League in 2018, which catapulted earnings for the overall year. They’re also the most followed club on Facebook.
