Real Madrid has matched its "10th triumph as champions of Europe by topping the Deloitte football rich list for a 10th straight year," according to Bill Wilson of the BBC. ManU moves up from fourth to second on the list, which is based on season '13-14 revenues. Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Paris St. Germain filled the next spots. The total combined revenue for the top 20 richest clubs rose by 14% to
€6.2B ($7B), the report found. The list "only looks at revenues accrued and
does not take into account club debts." Other findings include: Galatasaray was the only club from outside the "big five" European leagues to make the top 20. Serie A side Napoli was a "new entrant into the top 20 after its revenues soared by more than 50%." Atlético Madrid moved up from 20th to 15th place after reaching the Champions League final (BBC, 1/21). In London, Owen Gibson reported off the pitch ManU has reaped the benefits of "huge commercial growth to narrow the gap to Real Madrid." Deloitte Senior Manager Austin Houlihan said, "Despite a poor on-pitch season in 2013-14, United's commercial strategy of securing global and regional partners is delivering substantial growth. Commercial revenue has grown 83% in the last three years. Thanks to the latest Premier League media deals, broadcast revenue also increased 34% to £135.8 million ($204M)." The ManU model, minted by CEO Ed Woodward, of "selling regional sponsorships in a range of categories, is now being copied by other clubs but they have some way to go to catch up" (GUARDIAN, 1/21).
TV DEALS BOOST EPL: In London, Glenn Moore wrote so huge are the TV deals now negotiated by the Premier League that "all 20 teams feature in football's 40 highest-earning clubs." West Ham United "take more cash" than Roma, Stoke City brings in more than Lazio, and Sunderland outperforms Porto. This is "hardly surprising when the bottom club in the top flight" will pick up around £60M ($90M) in broadcast revenue alone. Then "there is gate money -- admission prices here are among the highest in Europe -- corporate income and merchandising." All this means "middling English clubs are capable of paying significantly higher wages than storied foreign ones" (INDEPENDENT, 1/22). In London, Roger Blitz reported "most of the top European clubs are generating increased revenues." Aggregate revenues of the top 20 clubs for last season are 14% higher than for '12-13 at €6.2B. The threshold for getting into the top 20 is 20% higher. Two clubs, Real Madrid and ManU, last season exceeded revenues of €500M ($569M). Deloitte said that number "could rise to five next season, as Bayern Munich, Barcelona and Paris Saint-Germain try to compete for big commercial deals" (FINANCIAL TIMES, 1/22).
FIVE THINGS: The BBC compiled five things Deloitte's money league told us: ManU could "top the list in two years," the British "are coming," winning is not everything, Newcastle is in "rude health" and stadiums have the "capacity to frustrate" (BBC, 1/22).
