Manchester United, Real Madrid Top Sportico’s 2023 List of Most Valuable Soccer Clubs

Manchester United topped Sportico’s list of the most valuable soccer clubs in the world.

The Red Devils carried a $5.95 billion valuation, putting them well ahead of Real Madrid ($5.23 billion). Barcelona ($4.95 billion), Liverpool ($4.71 billion) and Bayern Munich ($4.46 billion) rounded out the top five.

Perhaps most surprisingly, Los Angeles FC was already the 16th-most valuable club ($900 million) despite having only made its MLS debut in 2018.

It’s doubtful MLS will ever overtake the top European leagues in terms of stature. But Sportico’s Kurt Badenhausen explained how the structure of the league helps to inflate the value of each club:

“The lack of promotion and relegation in MLS serves as its own kind of scarcity, as it is rare in a sport that was built on a system of teams moving up and down based on performance. MLS revenues average only $57 million per team, but the lack of ‘pro/rel’ helps set a valuations floor of roughly $400 million—higher than half the Premier League—and a 10.2 average revenue multiple that tops the NBA.”

The barrier for entry is much lower relatively speaking as well.

Badenhausen noted the average value for a franchise in MLS is $582 million. The NHL has the lowest average team valuation among the United States’ historical big four sports at $1.01 billion. In addition, the 32 most expensive soccer clubs outside of the U.S. carry an average valuation of $1.92 billion.

Sportico’s list also reflected the increasing primacy of the Premier League. Six of the 10 richest clubs are based in England. Everton and Leicester City are among the teams in a relegation battle yet sat 34th and 45th in Sportico’s valuation.