It might be a year of transition at FC Barcelona, after years of dominance both in the league and continent for over a decade. But they have managed to leave all of the other European giants behind; toppling Clasico rivals Real Madrid in the recently published Forbes’ Football Rich List.
A loss at the hands of their eternal rivals last weekend and the Blaugrana camp found themselves in a gloomy atmosphere. However, they can surely lift their morale up, as they brushed aside Real Madrid in the monetary department by a handsome margin.
According to the list, the Catalan giants have seen their evaluation surge by 18% in the last couple of years; whereas Real has achieved just 12% in the same time.
Bayern Munich, who are on the third spot, have generated a whopping 39% more valuation since 2019 through their magnificent performance on the pitch.
Mike Ozanian the mastermind behind the list, stated that the top European clubs’ average worth surged massively even after limited matchday revenues.
“The world’s 20 most valuable soccer teams are worth an average of $2.28 billion (£1.66bn) apiece, an increase of 30% from two years ago, the last time we published the ranking.
The jump comes despite a decline in revenue caused by limited attendance during the pandemic, with buyers focused on what they see as still untapped revenue potential in the sport’s massive global following.”
Ozanian said.
Although Barcelona and Real Madrid are on the top of the table, the rest of the positions are occupied by Premier League clubs, with Manchester, United, Manchester City, Chelsea, Liverpool, Arsenal and Tottenham all featuring in the list.
Since its inception, the annual rankings saw both the Spanish clubs and Manchester United dominate, with the Red Devils finishing as leaders in Forbes’ list eleven times compared to Madrid’s five. PSG made their way into the top 10 with a mind-boggling 129% increase in value since Nasser Al Khelaifi took over in 2012.
