The 10 Richest Football Clubs in The World

The richest football clubs in the world is an annual list compiled by NaijaTask with the help of relevant data released by independent agencies such as Deloitte and data released by the clubs in question.

This list of the richest football clubs in the world analyzes how much these football clubs generate annually, putting them on top compared to other clubs. Interestingly, all of these clubs are based in Europe and it is not in any way much of a surprise, considering the fact Europe has the best football clubs on the planet.

The 10 Richest Football Clubs in The World

In descending order, below is the list of the richest football clubs in the world alongside a breakdown of their revenue. We hope you enjoy this!

10. Juventus – €397.9 million

Cristiano Ronaldo’s move from Real Madrid to Juventus in 2019 contributed to the rise of Juventus wealth despite the fact that the world’s most popular athlete takes a decent chunk home as salary. Regardless, Ronaldo’s presence at the Old Lady means higher merchandise sales and greater visibility.

While some might doubt the Ronaldo effect, it is noteworthy to admit that Juventus share price doubled the moment he landed at the club and fell around the time he contracted the coronavirus!

Enough of Ronaldo already—Juventus is the only Italian club in the top 10 list of the richest clubs in the world!

Here’s Juventus revenue breakdown:

Matchday Revenue: €42.3m
Broadcasting Revenue: €166.7m
Commercial Revenue: €188.9m

9. Tottenham Hotspur – €445.7 million

Quite unbelievable but Tottenham is one of the top richest clubs in the world. Tottenham’s 62,000 stadium capacity and a previous run of form in the Champions League greatly contributed to their coffers. Although Spurs were equally impacted by the coronavirus of 2020 which affected every football club and saw to the Lillywhites lose €75m in revenue. Surprisingly, the London club amassed a whooping €276.7m in Broadcasting Revenue!

Here’s Tottenham Hotspur revenue breakdown:

Matchday Revenue: €107.7m
Broadcasting Revenue: €155.0m
Commercial Revenue: €183.0m

8. Chelsea – €445.7 million

With unwavering support from Roman Abramovich, the club’s owner, Chelsea is never in doubt to make the list of the richest clubs in the world. The pandemic saw Chelsea lose €43m in Revenue in 2020 but the English club has not done badly ever since as it went ahead to win the UEFA Champions League in the 2020/2021 season.

With a mouth-watering sponsorship deal from Yokohama Tyres and Nike and a tenacious fan base, Chelsea has managed to run smoothly and even splurge on transfers.

Here’s Chelsea’s revenue breakdown:

Matchday Revenue: €107.7m
Broadcasting Revenue: €155.0m
Commercial Revenue: €183.0m

7. Paris St-Germain €540.6 million

Undoubtedly the richest club in France, Paris St-Germain boasts some of the biggest names in world football and has shown no sign of slowing down, all to win the Champions League.

PSG lost €95m in revenue as a result of the pandemic in 2020 and have since cut earnings since the arrival of Kylian Mbappe and Neymar at the club. However, this has not prevented them from signing star players.

The larger share of PSG over time has been from commercial deals, namely with Emirate that sponsors their shirts and Nike who acts as their technical kit supplier.

Here’s PSG revenue breakdown:

Matchday Revenue: €92.4m
Broadcasting Revenue: €149.6m
Commercial Revenue: €298.6m

6. Manchester City – €549.2 million

Big money spender, Cit has watched with glee at how their revenue has grown in leaps and bound in the last decade, all thanks to heavy investments made by the club decision-makers. To be fair, City has enjoyed a decent amount of silverware over the years and has one of the most formidable teams in England.

The Manchester club’s 54,054 fans, on average as well as their commercial contracts and huge broadcasting deal accounts for the club’s revenue. While City’s 2020 revenue fell by €61m, the club’s sponsorship by Etihad Airways cushioned the effect of the loss.

A $500million (£388million) investment was made by Silver Lake Management, a US-based PE tech investing group in 2019 in order to own a 10% stake of the  City Football Group. The deal remains the largest private equity-backed football club deal of all time, even to date.

Here’s Manchester City revenue breakdown:

Matchday Revenue: €47.6m
Broadcasting Revenue: €217.0m
Commercial Revenue: €284.6m

5. Liverpool – €558.6 million

Champions League winners in 2019 and a stunning second-place in the season’s Premier League handed Liverpool a massive revenue boost. The Reds juiced up 2020 the following season—winning the English Premier League in stunning season-long performance, making it their first EPL win in thirty (30) years!

As with other clubs, Liverpool suffered a €46m loss in 2020 at a time the COVID-19 pandemic ravaged the world.

Here’s Liverpool revenue breakdown:

Matchday Revenue: €82.7m
Broadcasting Revenue: €232.5m
Commercial Revenue: €243.4m

4. Manchester United – €580.4 million

A global household name and the most popular English club, Manchester United is unarguably the richest English football club. Ironically, the club’s financial status does not have any positive impact on the club, particularly on the pitch. United have held the top spot for years as the richest club in the world, particularly in 2017 and years before.

The pandemic affected Manchester United more than any other English club in 2020; leaving the club with a loss of €135m, implying an unbelievable 19% drop from the previous year. Despite the team’s dismal performance on the pitch, the club remains a money-making machine with the power to reel in bigger sponsors that can keep the club on the list of the world’s richest clubs.

Here’s Manchester United revenue breakdown:

Matchday Revenue: €98.8m
Broadcasting Revenue: €159.9m
Commercial Revenue: €321.7m

3. Bayern Munich – €634.1 million

It would be surprising not to see the German giants on this list, no? Bayern Munich’s success almost every season accounts for its popularity and massive merchandise sales. As a matter of fact, Bayern Munich boasts of the second-overall in merchandise sales in the world!

The Bavarian giants, plagued by the pandemic lost €26m in revenue but it was less felt since the UEFA Champions League win in 2020 cushioned the effect.

Bayern Munich is unarguably the most successful German football club in history and an average of 75,354 fans find their way to the club’s stadium when they play at home.

Here’s Bayern Munich revenue breakdown:

Matchday Revenue: €70.3m
Broadcasting Revenue: €203.3m
Commercial Revenue: €360.5m

2. Real Madrid – €714.9 million

Real Madrid has been negatively impacted since the departure of Ronaldo, both on and off the pitch but there is no denying that the pandemic dealt a heavier blow to the club as it lost €39m in revenue. On the flip side, the Spanish giant took advantage of fans’ absence to work on the much-revered Santiago Bernabeu stadium. Interestingly, Real generated €75m during the pandemic, more than any club.

The 13th-time European Champions though failed to record any glory in 2019 and 2020 but managed to get a sizeable share of the La Liga TV revenue and boosted its merchandising revenue while cutting cost.

Here’s Real Madrid revenue breakdown:

Matchday Revenue: €108.2m
Broadcasting Revenue: €224.0m
Commercial Revenue: €382.7m

1. Barcelona – €715m

Despite being plagued by an economic crisis and accruing massive debts over time, Barcelona continues to rake in money, making them the richest football club in the world.

Barcelona terribly struggled at the height of the pandemic and had to release Luis Suarez as a way of downsizing after initially struggling to make the players take about a 50% pay cut. Despite the club’s financial mess, Barcelona made some terrible but expensive signings that had not impacted the club’s result, particularly Griezmann’s. Ironically, Luis Suarez whom the club let off on age premise became pivotal to Atletico Madrid’s La Liga win while Barcelona came a distant third behind Atleti and Madrid.

Although Barcelona is the world’s richest club, it remains in a financial mess and has been able to make Messi commit to the club for five more years having agreed to take a 50% pay cut.

Here’s Barcelona revenue breakdown:

Matchday Revenue: €126.4m
Broadcasting Revenue: €248.5m
Commercial Revenue: €340.2m

Top 10 Richest Football Clubs in The World

Below is a list of the richest football clubs in the world: