The 19 biggest money-making football clubs of the 2014/15 season
The biggest money-making football clubs of the 2014/15 season have been ranked by accountancy firm Deloitte in their annual Football Money League report.
Europe continues to dominate, with all the teams on the list from that continent.
Within Europe, the Premier League punches above its weight, with UK clubs making up 8 of the top 19.
Much of this is thanks to the enduring appeal of the English Premiership, which is still the most-watched league in the world.
Elsewhere on the list, Italy has four placings, while Spain and Germany have three. France has to settle for one.
Deloitte says that exchange rates help explain the large English showing, and adds that with a new financing structure for the Premier League coming into effect next season — which will see clubs share around £5 billion in TV revenues — English clubs could get even richer:
With over half of the top 30 already made up of Premier League clubs, and the staggering new Premier League domestic broadcast deal coming into effect in 2016/17, there is an outside chance that the Money League top 30 will feature all 20 Premier League clubs in two years' time.
Check out the list below for the highest club football revenues in 2014/15:
19. Inter Milan (Italy)
2014/15 Revenue: €164.8 million
(£125.5 million; $187 million)
We begin with Inter Milan, not to be confused with its rival AC Milan, who it shares the 80,000 capacity San Siro Stadium with. Down two places from the season before, the club has the lowest matchday revenue of any club on the list, but sponsorship from Nike and Pirelli continues to bring in the money. A failure to qualify for any European championships in 2015/16 will hurt TV revenues.
18. Everton (UK)
2014/15 Revenue: €165 million
(£130 million; $188 million)
Liverpool’s neighbour and rival, Everton are having a disappointing season in the Premier League but fare well when it comes to money. Farhad Moshiri, a British Iranian businessman, has a 49% stake in the club. Broadcast rights, which accounts for 69% of the club’s revenue, rose to £86.8 million last season, while ticket sales are at a ten year high.
17. Newcastle United (UK)
2014/15 Revenue: €169 million
(£133 million; $192 million)
Newcaslte has a big fanbase, which means big money, but it stands to lose a chunk of that if it gets relegated from the Premier League this season. The club is owned by British billionaire Mike Ashley, who is disliked by fans, and the Sports Direct owner has suggested he’d like to sell up when wins its next trophy.
16. AS Roma (Italy)
2014/15 Revenue: €180 million
(£142 million; $205 million)
AS Roma is the fifth most supported club in football mad Italy, so the club has deep pockets. As it happens, it’s using that money to build a new stadium this year, said to be inspired by the Colosseum.
15. Atlético Madrid (Spain)
2014/15 Revenue: €187 million
(£148 million; $213 million)
Another Club that’s moving to a new, bigger stadium this year, Atletico Madrid enjoys royal patronage: Felipe VI, the current king of Spain, has been the honorary president of the club since 2003. Barcelona’s recent dramatic drop off in form has also left Atletico in with a chance of winning La Liga this season.
14. AC Milan (Italy)
2014/15 Revenue: €199 million
(£157 million; $226 million)
Down two places from last year, AC Milan is one of many clubs on the list with a high profile majority shareholder — in this instance Italy’s former Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. Matchday revenue in 2014/15 was €2.6 million lower than the previous year due to the club playing fewer home games, while the absence of any UEFA presence saw a drop in TV revenue.
13. Schalke 04 (Germany)
2014/15 Revenue: €220 million
(£174 million; $250 million)
Up one place from the season before, the “04” comes from when the club was founded in 1904 in case you were wondering. It has a well-known rivalry with German neighbours Borussia Dortmund, who we’ll be seeing later on. Schalke have jumped on football’s international appeal, with over 20 club media channels and region specific content in five languages, that helps shore up revenue from overseas.
12. Tottenham Hotspur (UK)
2014/15 Revenue: €256 million
(£202 million; $291 million)
Tottenham has become a serious contender against Leicester FC for the Premier League title this season, but it was already raking it in last year thanks to a superb half decade. Taking pride of place as one of the world’s oldest clubs — founded in 1882 — it’s currently owned by the English National Investment Company.
11. Borussia Dortmund (Germany)
2014/15 Revenue: €281 million
(£222 million; $320 million)
Borussia Dortmund is massively rich, but it’s also charitable: ticket sales from a 2011 game and €1 million from Dortmund’s main sponsor Evonik went to Japanese earthquake and tsunami victims.
10. Juventus (Italy)
2014/15 Revenue: €324 million
(£256 million; $369 million)
Founded 1897 a group of young Torinese students, it’s safe to say Juventus became bigger than any of them could have imagined. It’s the best-supported football club in Italy, with over 12 million supporters — approximately 29% of the total Italian football fanbase.
9. Liverpool (UK)
2014/15 Revenue: €392 million
(£310 million; $446 million)
Despite mixed success over the last few seasons, Liverpool fans are in an upbeat mood thanks to their charismatic new manager Jurgen Klopp. The Merseyside club are also in with a shout of winning the Europa League this year. The club is one of a number of Premier League teams to have caught the eye of American investors: at present, it’s owned by the Fenway Sports Group, who also own the Boston Red Sox baseball team.
8. Chelsea (UK)
2014/15 Revenue: €420 million
(£332 million; $478 million)
London club Chelsea has had a dreadful season, which resulted in the firing of manager Jose Mourinho, but at least its revenues are sky high, thanks in part to the club lifting the Premier League trophy last season. Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich bought the club in 2003 and his continued investment has (mostly) kept fans happy since.
7. Arsenal (UK)
2014/15 Revenue: €436 million
(£344 million; $496 million)
London club Arsenal boasts the fifth largest fanbase in the world on social media and is worth over $1.3 billion according to Forbes magazine. A lot of its success is down to its manager Arsene Wenger, who has served the club for almost two decades.
6. Manchester City (UK)
2014/15 Revenue: €464 million
(£366 million; $$528 million)
Winners of the Premier League title in 2012 and 2014, Man City is owned by investors of the Abu Dhabi United Group who are seeking to turn the club into a dominant force in European football. Premiership glory looks set to elude the team this season, but there’s always next year.
5. Bayern Munich (Germany)
2014/15 Revenue: €474 million
(£374 million; $539 million)
Down two places from last year, Bayern Munich continues to rake it in. The club counts former players Hopfner and Rummenigge as its President and Chairman respectively, who took them to championship glory last season. Matchday revenue grew marginally to €89.8 million, as average league attendances rose to 72,882 following approval to increase the capacity of the Allianz Arena to just over 75,000
4. Paris Saint-Germain (France)
2014/15 Revenue: €481 million
(£380 million; $547 million)
France’s only club on the list is also one of the wealthiest in the world. It’s currently owned by the Qatar Investment Authority, which has ploughed $340 million into the club since 2012, allowing it to buy some of the world’s most expensive players, build its brand, and cement its league success.
3. Manchester United (UK)
2014/15 Revenue: €520 million
(£411 million; $592 million)
Fans may be missing the Alex Ferguson-led glory days, but the global brand of Manchester United still gave it the biggest revenues of any English club in the 2014/15 season. It’s also one of the few clubs in the world to have gone public, debuting on the New York stock exchange in 2012.
2. FC Barcelona (Spain)
2014/15 Revenue: €561 million
(£443 million; $638 million)
Home of Lionel Messi — the world’s best player in many people’s eyes — Barcelona rises two places from the previous season. Its ownership structure is something of a cooperative: it is not possible to purchase shares in the club, but only membership. As of 2016, the club has 140,000 members.
1. Real Madrid (Spain)
2014/15 Revenue: €577 million
(£456 million; $657 million)
The biggest money making team of last season was voted by FIFA as the European club of the 20th century, and its fortunes are only getting better this millennium. Real Madrid has some of the world’s most expensive players, including Cristiano Ronaldo, but its revenue to wage ratio is in good health thanks to high ticket, shirt, and TV rights sales. Expect it to be number one for many years to come.