30 Most Valuable Football Clubs in the World [Ranked]

In brief
Forbes has published a list of the 30 most valuable football clubs for 2024.
With a valuation of £5.4 billion, Real Madrid is still the most valuable football team in the world because to its on-field achievements and earnings.
The Premier League’s most valued assets are Manchester City, Manchester United, and Liverpool.
It’s hardly surprising that football, the most popular sport in the world, has grown to be a major force in the economy given its current position. Beyond working-class fervour and rivalry, the beautiful game has transformed into a worldwide powerhouse where talk is dominated by eye-popping transfers, rich sponsorships, and multibillion-pound TV deals.

Football’s financial power keeps growing every year as the world’s money flows more quickly, especially in the Premier League and other elite European leagues. The results of club owners’ ongoing efforts to turn their businesses into expansive empires are astounding. The most valuable football teams in the world currently have an average value of £1.7 billion, up 5.1% from a year earlier, according to Forbes.

The same analysis, which provides intriguing insights, ranks the 30 most valuable clubs for the 2024–2025 season. The results show a variety of clubs performing either well above or below their economic constraints, even though several teams dominate both their domestic competitions and the financial rankings. This disparity highlights the various financial environments in football, where a team’s financial strength isn’t always correlated with on-field performance.

30-21

Five MLS clubs & five Premier League clubs feature

Almost making it into the top 30 are Brighton & Hove Albion and Toronto. Only £4 million separates the two teams, which are on different sides of the Atlantic. As their never-ending production line repeatedly triumphs in their quest for European football, the latter further demonstrates that a significant budget is not required to compete with the elite teams.

Austin FC, who sit just behind rival MLS team DC United, are in a yawning chasm of £15 million, placing them just clear of the bottom two. New York City and the Seattle Sounders round out a group that is dominated by American clubs. Even while North America’s football sector is still developing and growing—most notably, they were awarded the right to host the 2026 World Cup—their position in the top financial rankings rapidly declines after this.

Newcastle United, Crystal Palace, Fulham, and Aston Villa are among the other Premier League teams in this group. Villa and Newcastle have become serious contenders to the venerable “big six” in recent years. Both teams continue to develop on and off the pitch even though their market values are lower. Under Unai Emery’s leadership, Villa qualified for the Champions League for the first time in more than 30 years last season, while the Magpies, motivated by their ambitious Saudi-led project, did the same the year before.

The most valuable football teams in the world (30–21)

Rank

Club

Worth

21.

The City of New York

£649 million

22.

Villa Aston

£610 million

23.

Newcastle United

£607 million

24.

Fulham

£603 million

25.

The Seattle Sounders

£599 million

26.

The Crystal Palace

£595 million

27.

DC United

£591 million

28.

FC Austin

£572 million

29.

Albion, Brighton & Hove

£557 million

30.

FC Toronto

20-11

Borussia Dortmund, AC MIlan & West Ham all hold a high ranking

Following the pattern of prosperous U.S. franchise models that have failed to leave a lasting impression on the world of football and are frequently viewed as a destination for Europe’s ageing stars, Atlanta United (£687m), LA Galaxy (£725m), and David Beckham’s Inter Miami (£786m) are ranked 20th, 19th, and 17th among the most valuable football clubs in the world, respectively.

Nestled between them in 18th place is Inter Milan, the 2022 Champions League finalists, who lost to Manchester City in a well-recorded triumph to conclude their protracted title chase. West Ham, now in 16th place, defeated Fiorentina in the Europa Conference League to become the lowest-ranked team to experience European victory in recent years.

Other European powerhouses like AC Milan, Atletico Madrid, Borussia Dortmund, and Juventus are located just outside the top 10. Despite sometimes taking a backseat to the continent’s best teams, these clubs’ financial situation suggests they will probably continue to be important participants for some time to come.

The most valuable football teams in the world (20–11)

Rank

Club

Worth

11.

Juventus

£1.56 billion

12.

Dortmund Borussia

£1.5 billion

13.

Real Madrid

£1.22 billion

14.

Milan AC

£1.09 billion

15.

LAFC

£916 million

16.

United West Ham

£840 million

17.

Miami Inter

£786 million

18.

Milan Inter

£763 million

19.

The LA Galaxy

£725 million

20.

United Atlanta

£687 million

Real Madrid, Manchester United, and Barcelona dominate 10-1.

The top 10 begins with the London triumvirate of Tottenham, Chelsea, and Arsenal. Although the abundance of excellent football teams in England’s capital is not surprising, few could have imagined Tottenham to take first place. Tottenham’s clever business strategy subtly outperforms its competitors, who frequently show off their financial prowess by making large transfer market expenditures. The Blues are notably featured three times in a list of the most costly transfer windows ever.

Just ahead of the London clubs are PSG, Bayern Munich, and Manchester City. This is hardly surprising given that City has won the Premier League four times in a row. They aren’t the most valuable club in England, though; Manchester United, who are in second place, are worth more than Liverpool, who are in fourth. The Reds have received recognition for their strategic approach and great financial stability under the astute and consistent leadership of FSG. Liverpool, in contrast to Chelsea and Manchester City, is still completely compliant with Financial Fair Play rules, even though other elite teams are under fire for their careless transfer spending.

Barcelona makes it into the top three, but the Spanish capital’s fierce opponents meet them head-on. For the third year in a row and the eighth time in the previous eleven years, Real Madrid, valued at £5.4 billion, is at the top of the list. Among the top 30 teams, the club made the most money (715 million), which was primarily due to their outstanding on-field performance. Real Madrid has won 16 major titles since 2014, including four Club World Cups, five European Super Cups, and six Champions League crowns.

The most valuable football teams in the world (10-1)

Rank

Club

Worth

Real Madrid

£5.4 billion

United Manchester

£5 billion

Barcelona

£4.27 billion

Liverpool

£4 billion