Top Football Clubs Surpass €10 Billion Revenue for the First Time
Once again, Spanish football titan Real Madrid topped the charts in Deloitte Football Money League, which summarizes the economic activities of the world's soccer clubs.
This year marked a milestone in sports finance, with the total revenue of the field’s top teams crossing the psychological benchmark of €10 billion, a field typically dominated by English clubs.
While fans of the English club Manchester United eagerly await Premier League's approval of Sir Jim Ratcliffe's acquisition of a 25% stake in the team potentially shifting sports-related affairs to the founder of the petrochemical giant Ineos many often reflect on the Glazer family's ownership. But now, supporters of their city rivals Manchester City, as well as those of Real Madrid, have reasons to discuss the Glazers why so?
The American Glazer family, more accustomed to American football with their NFL club Tampa Bay Buccaneers achieving Super Bowl victories in both 2002 and 2020, had little familiarity with European soccer. Following their debt-financed acquisition of Manchester United in 2005, they believed financial gains were fairly insulated from on-field performance. This perspective has become apparent in the club’s performance, which thrived under the legendary Scottish coach Sir Alex Ferguson until his retirement in 2013.
Since Ferguson's departure, however, Manchester United stumbled, plagued by the Glazers' lack of passion for European football. This disinterest allowed the Abu Dhabi-owned Manchester City to overshadow them, which scooped every possible trophy in 2023 but still fell short in revenue competition indicating that the Glazers might have been onto something after all.
So, if not City, then which club reigned supreme in the latest season's financial game?
DOMINIK SZOBOSZLAI's CLUB TAKES A HIT
According to Deloitte Football Money League's financial review, Real Madrid has emerged as the most effective money-raising football club in the world, the first time since 2018.
Real Madrid boasted a record revenue of €831 million (approx. 323.2 billion HUF), an increase of €118 million (approx. 45.9 billion HUF),
primarily due to impressive commercial performance and increased match-day attendance following the subsidence of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Highlighting Real’s financial strength, they have recently inked a €70 million per year (approx. 27.2 billion HUF) sponsorship deal with HP, which will place the tech company’s logo solely on the jersey sleeves, rather than in a more prominent position. The agreement also involves HP providing Real Madrid access to its developments in artificial intelligence, with potential to enhance sporting performance.
Hot on their heels, Manchester City secured second place with a record revenue of €826 million (approx. 321.2 billion HUF), chiefly fueled by an additional €76 million (approx. 29.6 billion HUF) from commercial and broadcasting revenues linked to their Premier League and Champions League victories.
Completing the podium, French giants PSG claimed third place with revenues of €802 million (approx. 311.9 billion HUF), with persistent efforts to retain star forward Kylian Mbappé, whose contract is nearing its end.
The Spanish Barcelona surged from seventh to fourth, with a 61% increase in match-day revenue, as well as a 45% rise in broadcasting and merchandising revenues. Conversely, Dominik Szoboszlai’s club, English Liverpool, tumbled from third to seventh, largely due to the absence of performance-related bonuses illustrating the validity of the Glazers’ stance on the negligible impact of sporting outcomes.
Nevertheless, the European football scene has never been more prolific.
SURPASSING THE DREAM BARRIER OF €10 BILLION FOR THE FIRST TIME
Deloitte's report reveals that the top 20 clubs have collectively surpassed the €10 billion revenue mark for the first time in history, totaling €10.5 billion (approx. 4082 billion HUF), a 14% increase compared to pre-COVID times.
Record-breaking figures were seen in the following categories:
* Match-day revenues reached €1.9 billion (approx. 739 billion HUF),
* Commercial revenues tallied up to €4.4 billion (approx. 1710 billion HUF) claiming the top spot as the main source of income for the first time since 2016.
In contrast, broadcast revenues showed a mere 5% growth, but with intriguing details for instance, foreign sales revenues for English Premier League clubs rose from €208 million (approx. 80.9 billion HUF) to €243 million (approx. 94.5 billion HUF). However, figures in other major leagues, like France, Germany, and Italy, remained relatively unchanged.
The dominance of Premier League teams over Europe's financial landscape continues.
HOW'S FERENCVAROS DOING?
In support of this, only eight Premier League clubs feature in the top twenty this time, but the relegated Leeds United, ranking 27th in Deloitte's league, generated more revenue than the Dutch Eredivisie's second-placed and Champions League group stage participant Ajax, which didn't even make the top thirty cutoff. English clubs listed between 21st and 30th place, even without international cup participations and corresponding revenues, still continue to accumulate wealth steadily.
Other clubs depend significantly on their European performances for a large portion of their revenue, a niche that the Hungarian club Ferencváros could potentially fit into. In 2022, Ferencváros closed with a net profit of 1.32 billion HUF, yet remains distant from Deloitte’s top thirty league.
While fans of the English club Manchester United eagerly await Premier League's approval of Sir Jim Ratcliffe's acquisition of a 25% stake in the team potentially shifting sports-related affairs to the founder of the petrochemical giant Ineos many often reflect on the Glazer family's ownership. But now, supporters of their city rivals Manchester City, as well as those of Real Madrid, have reasons to discuss the Glazers why so?
The American Glazer family, more accustomed to American football with their NFL club Tampa Bay Buccaneers achieving Super Bowl victories in both 2002 and 2020, had little familiarity with European soccer. Following their debt-financed acquisition of Manchester United in 2005, they believed financial gains were fairly insulated from on-field performance. This perspective has become apparent in the club’s performance, which thrived under the legendary Scottish coach Sir Alex Ferguson until his retirement in 2013.
Since Ferguson's departure, however, Manchester United stumbled, plagued by the Glazers' lack of passion for European football. This disinterest allowed the Abu Dhabi-owned Manchester City to overshadow them, which scooped every possible trophy in 2023 but still fell short in revenue competition indicating that the Glazers might have been onto something after all.
So, if not City, then which club reigned supreme in the latest season's financial game?
DOMINIK SZOBOSZLAI's CLUB TAKES A HIT
According to Deloitte Football Money League's financial review, Real Madrid has emerged as the most effective money-raising football club in the world, the first time since 2018.
Real Madrid boasted a record revenue of €831 million (approx. 323.2 billion HUF), an increase of €118 million (approx. 45.9 billion HUF),
primarily due to impressive commercial performance and increased match-day attendance following the subsidence of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Highlighting Real’s financial strength, they have recently inked a €70 million per year (approx. 27.2 billion HUF) sponsorship deal with HP, which will place the tech company’s logo solely on the jersey sleeves, rather than in a more prominent position. The agreement also involves HP providing Real Madrid access to its developments in artificial intelligence, with potential to enhance sporting performance.
Hot on their heels, Manchester City secured second place with a record revenue of €826 million (approx. 321.2 billion HUF), chiefly fueled by an additional €76 million (approx. 29.6 billion HUF) from commercial and broadcasting revenues linked to their Premier League and Champions League victories.
Completing the podium, French giants PSG claimed third place with revenues of €802 million (approx. 311.9 billion HUF), with persistent efforts to retain star forward Kylian Mbappé, whose contract is nearing its end.
The Spanish Barcelona surged from seventh to fourth, with a 61% increase in match-day revenue, as well as a 45% rise in broadcasting and merchandising revenues. Conversely, Dominik Szoboszlai’s club, English Liverpool, tumbled from third to seventh, largely due to the absence of performance-related bonuses illustrating the validity of the Glazers’ stance on the negligible impact of sporting outcomes.
Nevertheless, the European football scene has never been more prolific.
SURPASSING THE DREAM BARRIER OF €10 BILLION FOR THE FIRST TIME
Deloitte's report reveals that the top 20 clubs have collectively surpassed the €10 billion revenue mark for the first time in history, totaling €10.5 billion (approx. 4082 billion HUF), a 14% increase compared to pre-COVID times.
Record-breaking figures were seen in the following categories:
* Match-day revenues reached €1.9 billion (approx. 739 billion HUF),
* Commercial revenues tallied up to €4.4 billion (approx. 1710 billion HUF) claiming the top spot as the main source of income for the first time since 2016.
In contrast, broadcast revenues showed a mere 5% growth, but with intriguing details for instance, foreign sales revenues for English Premier League clubs rose from €208 million (approx. 80.9 billion HUF) to €243 million (approx. 94.5 billion HUF). However, figures in other major leagues, like France, Germany, and Italy, remained relatively unchanged.
The dominance of Premier League teams over Europe's financial landscape continues.
HOW'S FERENCVAROS DOING?
In support of this, only eight Premier League clubs feature in the top twenty this time, but the relegated Leeds United, ranking 27th in Deloitte's league, generated more revenue than the Dutch Eredivisie's second-placed and Champions League group stage participant Ajax, which didn't even make the top thirty cutoff. English clubs listed between 21st and 30th place, even without international cup participations and corresponding revenues, still continue to accumulate wealth steadily.
Other clubs depend significantly on their European performances for a large portion of their revenue, a niche that the Hungarian club Ferencváros could potentially fit into. In 2022, Ferencváros closed with a net profit of 1.32 billion HUF, yet remains distant from Deloitte’s top thirty league.
