The richest sport clubs in the world

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Manchester United is again placed first in the Rich List of the world's top football clubs, based on income from the 2002/03 season. Generating income of over € 250 million, United were well ahead of their nearest rivals and occupied the top position for the seventh successive year of the Deloitte Football Rich List.

Dan Jones, Director of the Sports Business Group at Deloitte, commented: "The top clubs in the world's number one sport are generating more income than ever before. Broadcast income is the largest single source for most of the clubs and despite the widespread speculation of a collapse in media values, we think this is unlikely. At the same time, many of football's leading clubs have a great, and as yet underused, opportunity to significantly develop other income streams, particularly from their stadia. For instance, Manchester United’s matchday income of €101m is over three times greater than their closest Italian rivals."

The global top 20 is entirely populated by European clubs, with English and Italian clubs occupying 12 of these positions. The remaining positions are filled by three clubs from each of the German Bundesliga and Spanish Primera Liga and one each from the top divisions in France and Scotland.

The Italian duo of Juventus and AC Milan are in 2nd and 3rd position respectively, their positions supported by the largest broadcasting incomes in world football and their appearance in the 2003 Champions' League Final. Whilst the Spanish giants, Real Madrid, may have a reputation as the world's number one glamour club, they hold 4th position in the Deloitte Football Rich List. Schalke 04 is the only debutant in the top 20, positioned at 14th thanks to an enterprising stadium development and strong domestic performance.

Commenting on the importance of clubs generating significant income from their stadia on matchdays and non-matchdays, Gerry Boon, Partner in the Sports Business Group at Deloitte, said: "Whilst clubs are much more commercially focused than they were a decade ago, there's still a lot more that clubs in Continental Europe could do strategically to improve the venue and facilities they operate, their stadium utilisation and also the income yield they generate from their fanbase."

Whilst income is the best publicly available measure of "financial muscle", the amount that a club chooses to spend helps determine their overall financial position. Achieving a better balance between income and costs remains the key financial challenge for most clubs. Dan Jones observes: "It's a paradox that the top 20 includes a couple of clubs that are having some financial difficulty - but their income is amongst the highest in the world, so the source of any financial difficulty doesn't lie with the revenues they earn."

Paul Rawnsley from the Sports Business Group at Deloitte commented: "It has been generally recognised that the game needs to enhance its financial credibility and, to help deal with this, regulation is a growing theme in European football. From the 2004/05 season we'll see the first stages of the UEFA Club Licensing system in place, including a requirement for clubs to meet certain financial criteria. This may appear harsh on those who have sound financial practices, but the responsibility for the imposition of increased regulation lies squarely with those whose house is not in order."

As part of the publication, FootballBusiness International provide a high level analysis of the income generation of US Sport teams. According to published data, Major League Baseball's New York Yankees generated more income than any other US Sports Team in the 2002/03 season, but at € 243 million, this was still less than Manchester United's total. The NFL's Tampa Bay Buccaneers, headed by the Glazer family, who also hold a growing stake in Manchester United, generated income of € 146 million - making them around 60% of Manchester United's 'size".

For tables, look : http://www.european-football-statistics ... chlist.htm