Revealed: 20 Richest Clubs In The World In 2023 [Full List]

Revealed: 20 Richest Clubs In The World In 2023 [Full List]

The top 20 revenue-producing clubs in the world, which include a record 11 Premier League teams, are examined by THEEAGLE.

For the second consecutive year in 2023, Manchester City has been recognized as the club with the highest income production in the Deloitte Money League.

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Real Madrid, a La Liga powerhouse, is ranked second, ahead of Liverpool and Manchester United from the Premier League, while Paris Saint-Germain rounds out the top five. The greatest movers were the Reds, who moved up to third place from seventh just a year earlier and first passed bitter rivals Manchester United.

Arsenal, the current Premier League champions, enters the top 10 mostly due to its high matchday earnings, although it still trails Chelsea and Tottenham, who are eighth and ninth, respectively.

In contrast to Liverpool, Barcelona tanked from fourth to seventh with a sharp decline in broadcast revenues as they competed in the UEFA Europa League in 2021-22. Bayern Munich find themselves a rung ahead of the Catalan giants which completes the top 10.

THEEAGLE takes a look at the full top 20 which includes a record 11 Premier League clubs.

20. NEWCASTLE UNITED | €212.3M | PREMIER LEAGUE

The Magpies, who recorded a 25% growth in revenue year over year, are also a new member on the list.

In all three income streams, they have made more money, with matchday revenue (€33 million) and commercial revenue leading the way.

19. EVERTON | 213.7M | PREMIER LEAGUE

Everton’s income decreased from €218.1 million to €213.7 million, making them the second Premier League team behind Leicester City to report negative growth.

Without any continental competition in 2021–22, their broadcast revenue decreased by €29 million, and their lackluster Premier League performance made matters worse.

The 96% wage/expense ratio at Everton demands quick correction.

18. LEEDS UNITED | €223.4M | PREMIER LEAGUE

Leeds’ commercial revenue has greatly increased, which has enabled them to report a 17% jump in total earnings.

A constant stream of revenues from television rights continued to come since they were able to keep afloat in the Premier League. Their matchday revenue also hit a record high of €28 million, guaranteeing a place in the top 20 list.

17. LEICESTER CITY | €255.5M | PREMIER LEAGUE

One of the two Premier League teams on this list with declining revenue is Leicester City. In the 2021–22 season, it decreased slightly from €255.5 million to €252.2 million.

Due to the Foxes’ participation in the Europa Conference League, their broadcast revenue decreased by more than €30 million. The club was able to significantly offset the loss thanks to revenue from other sources.

16. AC MILAN | €264.9M | SERIE A

After their wildly successful 2021–22 season, in which they won the Scudetto, the reigning Serie A winners are a new addition to the list.

The club’s broadcast and commercial revenues have surpassed pre-pandemic levels, with the former growing by €22 million and the latter by €41 million, with the exception of their matchday revenue, which has decreased by €4 million.

Italy might have experienced a significant increase in matchday revenue if only it had recovered from the dangers of Covid-19 sooner.

15. WEST HAM UNITED | €301.2M | PREMIER LEAGUE

When West Ham made it to the Europa League semifinals in the 2021–22 season, they outperformed expectations.

They received a hefty return as their broadcast revenue increased to €193 million from €144 million prior to the outbreak. The Hammers also experienced a good gain in matchday (€49 million) and commercial (€59 million) revenues, which enabled them to surpass the €300 million revenue threshold. It represents a 36% rise over the prior year.

14. INTER MILAN | €308.4M | SERIE A

Inter has experienced a decline in revenue, just as Juventus. Its value has decreased from €330.9m to €308.4m, a fall of 7%.

This is a significant blow to their finances since both their commercial and broadcast revenue have decreased by €26 million and €39 million, respectively. Additionally, the Nerazzurri’s high wage-to-expense ratio (82%), which needs to be addressed

13. BORUSSIA DORTMUND | €356.9M | BUNDESLIGA

Borussia Dortmund’s revenue increased by 6%, with the majority of that gain coming from their commercial and matchday revenues, which are currently at €174m and €38m, respectively.

The fact that their time in Europe was cut short at the Europa League round of 32 stage is one of the factors contributing to their decrease in broadcast revenue from €187m to €145m.

12. ATLETICO MADRID | €393.2M | LA LIGA

Atletico Madrid has moved up one notch to position 12 thanks to an 18% increase in revenue year over year.

Atletico receives the third-largest slice of broadcast revenue, or 57% of their overall earnings, after La Liga heavyweights Real Madrid and Barcelona. However, because they were eliminated from European tournaments this season, which will negatively influence their broadcast earnings, their ranks may suffer in the following edition.

11. JUVENTUS | €400.6M | SERIE A

One of four clubs in the top 20 list with negative growth is Juventus. Due to the fact that Italy was one of the nations most severely affected by the Covid-19 outbreak, their revenue has decreased by 8%.

The Turin giants’ season was significantly influenced by crowd limits, which reduced matchday revenue. Additionally, they lost in the round of 16 of the Champions League and finished fourth in their domestic league, which hurt their TV earnings.

10. ARSENAL | €433.5M | PREMIER LEAGUE

Due to its huge matchday revenue, which was nearly three times that of the Serie A team, Arsenal defeated Juventus to enter the top 10 on the list.

The Gunners made significant financial investments in the Emirates Stadium, which are finally paying off for them.

However, Arsenal’s broadcast revenue was hurt by the fact that they were ineligible to compete in any UEFA club competition during the 2021–22 season.

9. TOTTENHAM HOTSPUR | €523M | PREMIER LEAGUE

This is the first time since the pandemic. As evidence that Daniel Levy is doing a good job as club president, Tottenham broke the €500 million revenue barrier.

Due to a sharp increase in matchday and commercial earnings, Spurs saw a 29% year-over-year income growth. Only if they had not been competing in the Europa Conference League, the third division of European competition, could they have received a larger proportion of television money. Even in that competition, they lost in the group stage, which had a negative impact on their television earnings.

8. CHELSEA | €568.3M | PREMIER LEAGUE

After enjoying 19 years of success under Roman Abramovich, Chelsea was sold to the Todd Boehly-Clearlake Capital combination, which paid £2.5 billion ($3.2 billion) for the club.

Following their elimination from the Champions League by Real Madrid in the quarterfinal, the Blues’ broadcast earnings suffered. The club’s huge increase in matchday and commercial revenue, however, has allowed them to stay on the list.

7. BARCELONA | €638.2 | LA LIGA

Barcelona seem to have been worst hit by the pandemic as their revenue is still down by €203m from the 2018-19 season. The Catalan giants had the sharpest fall in the rankings with the club dropping from fourth on the list to seventh.

Broadcast revenue declined by 13 per cent while their commercial revenue (at €7m) was significantly outpaced by other clubs.

Barca’s sponsorship deal with Spotify did help stabilise the ship a bit but was not enough to keep them within the top five.

However, the economic levers activated by the club, including the sale of both 49.9% of its ‘Barça Licensing and Merchandising’ company and 25% of its domestic La Liga rights over a 25-year period, did not impact revenue in 2021-22 and will only be reflected in the next editions of the survey.

6. BAYERN MUNICH | €653.6M | BUNDESLIGA

Bayern Munich dropped from third to sixth on the list despite a 7% rise in income from the previous year.

The fact that the Bavarian giants haven’t surpassed their pre-pandemic revenue levels shows that the team is still struggling financially as a result of Covid-19.

Bayern, whose broadcast revenue decreased by €48 million from the previous year, has also fallen behind the Premier League clubs’ rate of recovery.

5. PARIS SAINT-GERMAIN | €654.2M | LIGUE 1

Paris Saint-Germain (PSG) surpassed their pre-pandemic levels by €18 million, suggesting that they have overcome the Covid-19 pandemic’s aftereffects.

The French champions also benefited from a vast rise in matchday revenue when fans returned to the stadium in full force in 2022. However, a Champions League early departure cost them €63 million in broadcast revenue.

PSG’s wage/revenue ratio, which is at 111%, is worrying. Superstars like Kylian Mbappe, Neymar Jr., and Lionel Messi are expensive, and their presence is having an impact.

4. MANCHESTER UNITED | €688.6M | PREMIER LEAGUE

After recording a 23% increase in overall revenue in 2022, Manchester United moved up one spot in the standings.

Although their matchday and commercial revenue increased by €47 million and €118 million, respectively, their below-average on-field performance had a negative impact on the revenue from broadcasts.

The Red Devils lost in the round of 16 of the Champions League, which resulted in a €34 million decrease in television revenue, and finished sixth in the Premier League.

3. LIVERPOOL | €701.7M | PREMIER LEAGUE

Liverpool overcame the €700 million revenue barrier to surpass established powerhouses like Manchester United and Barcelona.

The Reds saw a gain in matchday revenue of more than €100 million and an increase of another €37 million, which enabled them see a rise in total revenue of 27%.

As runners-up in both the Premier League and the Champions League, Jurgen Klopp’s team was guaranteed to receive a sizable portion of the broadcast money all the way through the season.

2. REAL MADRID | €713.8M | LA LIGA

The Covid-19 pandemic’s impacts are still being felt by Real Madrid, since the club’s revenue from 2018–19 is still €43 million short. Los Blancos would have won the Money League in 2021–2022 if they had achieved their pre–pandemic performance levels.

However, the Spanish goliaths saw an 11% increase in sales from 2021. This was entirely the result of a jump in matchday revenue from just €9m to €88m.

The fact that Los Blancos won the UEFA Champions League and La Liga furthered their cause.

1. MANCHESTER CITY | €731M | PREMIER LEAGUE

Manchester City maintained its lead in the Money League despite a 13% increase in revenue from €644.9m to €731m.

Their expansion has been fueled by a rise in commercial revenue, which increased by €65 million to €373 million in 2021–22, setting a new Premier League record.

With each new season, the Manchester club’s global influence grows as Pep Guardiola’s team continues to rule English football. They are the reigning Premier League champions and advanced to the Champions League final four, both of which boosted their earnings.