Earlier today, Sportico published its annual list of the world’s 50 most valuable soccer clubs, and ranks New York City FC at 20.
New York City are one of four Major League Soccer clubs in the Top 20, and join LAFC, Atlanta United, Inter Miami, and LA Galaxy. Last year, Sporitco placed NYCFC at #27, and had just three MLS clubs in the Top 20.
These are the 50 MOST VALUABLE soccer clubs in the world:
European soccer clubs dominate the top of the financial table, but MLS lands the most clubs with 20 in the top 50, more than twice as many as the EPL.
Full list: https://t.co/G8pKNPSzKZ pic.twitter.com/URUhmxQwtV
— Sportico (@Sportico) May 8, 2024
The teams in the Top 10 are unchanged from last year, and remain dominated by European heavyweights. The top of the table is exactly the same. They are, in order, Manchester United, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Bayern Munich, and Manchester City.
The clubs that fill out the rest of the Top 10 remain the same, but the rankings are slightly reshuffled. Paris Saint-Germain leap-frogged over Arsenal to #7, while Chelsea’s stagnant valuation dropped them to #10, behind Tottenham Hotspur.
Sportico: World’s Most Valuable Soccer Clubs 2024
| Rank | Club | Value |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Manchester United | $6.20 billion |
| 2 | Real Madrid | $6.06 billion |
| 3 | FC Barcelona | $5.28 billion |
| 4 | Liverpool | $5.11 billion |
| 5 | Bayern Munich | $4.80 billion |
| 6 | Manchester City | $4.75 billion |
| 7 | Paris Saint-Germain | $4.05 billion |
| 8 | Arsenal | $3.91 billion |
| 9 | Tottenham Hotspur | $3.49 billion |
| 10 | Chelsea | $3.47 billion |
| 11 | Juventus | $1.77 bliion |
| 12 | Borussia Dortmund | $1.64 billion |
| 13 | Atletico de Madrid | $1.62 billion |
| 14 | AC Milan | $1.2 billion |
| 15 | LAFC | $1.15 billion |
| 16 | Inter Milan | $1.06 billion |
| 17 | Atlanta United | $1.05 billion |
| 18 | Inter Miami | $1.02 billion |
| 19 | LA Galaxy | $1.00 billion |
| 20 | New York City FC | $840 million |
| 21 | Austin FC | $800 million |
| 22 | Seattle Sounders | $795 million |
| 23 | Olympique Lyonnais | $780 million |
| 24 | AS Roma | $770 million |
| 25 | America | $750 million |
| 26 | AFC Ajax | $740 million |
| 27 | West Ham United | $725 million |
| 28 | Toronto FC | $725 million |
| 29 | DC United | $720 million |
| 30 | Portland Timbers | $715 million |
| 31 | Guadalajara | $710 million |
| 32 | Newcastle United | $700 million |
| 33 | Napoli | $690 million |
| 34 | Philadelphia Union | $685 million |
| 35 | SL Benfica | $675 million |
| 36 | Charlotte FC | $655 million |
| 37 | Columbus Crew | $650 million |
| 38 | FC Cincinnati | $645 million |
| 39 | Minnesota United | $640 million |
| 40 | Nashville SC | $635 million |
| 41 | Sporting Kansas City | $630 million |
| 42 | New York Red Bulls | $615 million |
| 43 | RB Leipzig | $610 million |
| 44 | Aston Villa | $600 million |
| 45 | Atalanta | $595 million |
| 46 | Eintracht Frankfurt | $580 million |
| 47 | Flamengo | $570 million |
| 48 | Monterrey | $655 million |
| 49 | San Jose Earthquakes | $560 million |
| 50 | Houston Dynamo | $550 million |
Now that you have the numbers, here are five takeaways.
1. The made-up valuations are consistent
By now, savvy readers should know that the valuation game is played with made-up numbers. Sportico, Forbes, and the other organizations that publish these stories don’t have access to internal financial statements. Instead, they make educated guesses. Or, as Sporitco puts it, they use “estimates in cases where detailed information was not available.”
But the made-up valuations are consistent. Sportico values NYCFC at $840 million, which aligns with the $850 million valuation by Forbes earlier this year. In addition, Sportico lists the club’s revenue at $68 million, which is close to the $61 million we reported last month after reviewing the financial disclosures City Football Group made to the British government.
2. New York City: The next billion-dollar club?
New York City are the only club in the Top 20 not valued at $1 billion or more. But it looks like it’s just a matter of time before they climb over that line.
Will that happen in the next year? According to Sportico, the club’s value jumped $150 million last year. According to Forbes, it was a more somber $50 million.
3. The new-stadium revenue bounce
You can expect New York City to make a significant jump in the rankings after they open their stadium in Willets Point in 2027.
These valuations take matchday revenue into account, and NYCFC’s is lower than most because of the costs of renting the venue, configuring the field, and setting up what is essentially a roadshow. In addition, they share food and beverage revenue with the hosts. New York City’s current matchday revenue is significantly limited.
Notably, NYCFC are the only team in the Top 20 that don’t own their stadium.
4. MLS are ascendent
The English Premier League continue to dominate the top spots. Six of the Top 10 play in England, and the EPL have a total of nine teams in the Top 50.
No MLS club cracked the Top 10. But there are five MLS clubs in the Top 20, up from three last year, and there are now an eye-watering 20 in the Top 50. You read that right: Fully 20 of the league’s 29 teams are among the most valuable in the world.
No other league comes close. The EPL’s nine teams count for the second-most.
5. No way José
The MLS juggernaut is so powerful, it even lifted San Jose Earthquakes into the Top 50.
That’s right, a perennially underperforming club that play in an outdated stadium with a capacity of just 18,000 is more valuable than most of the teams in the EPL, Italy’s Serie A, and Germany’s Bundesliga, and almost all of the teams in Brazil’s Serie A, France’s Ligue 1, Holland’s Eredivisie, and Spain’s La Liga.
San Jose ($560 million) barely trail Monterrey ($565 million), a titan of Liga MX who play in the 53,500-capacity Estadio BBVA . That’s because every MLS club have a baseline value of $500 million. To quote ourselves:
When expansion side San Diego FC takes the field in 2025, they will be the 30th club to join MLS. The ownership group reportedly paid $500 million for the right to be a part of one of the two best leagues in North America. (Charlotte FC reportedly paid $325 million back in 2022.)
That puts the base price of every MLS club at $500 million. If real estate is about location, location, location, then that’s what every MLS club are worth simply for being in the school district.
