Expensive, but the best ?: Barcelona ousted Real Madrid for the first time in history as the most valuable club in the world

04/12/2021 15:40

• Clarín.com

• sports

Updated 04/12/2021 3:40 PM

Barcelona unseated Real Madrid for the first time in history as the most valuable football club in the world, according to the list published by the American magazine Forbes, in a report that determines that the value of clubs has risen 30% on average in recent years. two years.

The Catalan club rises to the top of the list, monopolized for the last 16 years by Real Madrid (5 times) and Manchester United (11 times), with a valuation of 4.76 billion dollars (3.996 billion euros), narrowly surpassing the 4.75 billion dollars (3.990 million euros) of Real Madrid.

The 20 most valuable soccer teams in the world have an average value of 2,280 million dollars each (1,914 million euros), which represents an increase of 30% compared to two years ago, the last time the ranking was published.

Consequently, the average income of the 20 teams was 370 million euros for the 2019-20 season, 9.6% less than in the 2017-18 season, while

the average operating income fell 70%

in the period. , up to 19.3 million euros.

According to the publication, this drop is far from over, with a worsening of revenue per match day during the current season, as most teams in the major European leagues still allow few fans to attend the stands.

Forbes used pre-pandemic operating income (2018-19 season), which was converted to US dollars based on average exchange rates during that season, and excluded player loan income.

Team values ​​are corporate (equity plus net debt) and include matchday income, but exclude real estate value.

Operating income is the sum of gross income, excluding interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization, player trading, and disposition of player records, while debt includes interest-bearing loans.

The top ten (in millions of euros)

1. FC Barcelona: 3.996 million

2. Real Madrid CF: 3,990

3. Bayern Munich: 3,540

4. Manchester United: 3,530

5. Liverpool: 3,440

6. Manchester City: 3,360

7. Chelsea: 2,686

8. Arsenal: 2,350

9. PSG: 2,098

10. Tottenham Hotspur: 1931.

Source: EFE