Manchester United may not have earned a place in the Champions League and will have to scrape to keep their Premier League title, but they still have been able to keep the lead as one of the most valuable clubs globally.
In this year’s Forbes Magazine list of the top twenty football teams, the Old Trafford club held onto top position with a value of £1.19bn, which is a two percent decrease from last year.
England landed seven clubs on the list, although the Premier League is known as the most indebted club league throughout Europe.
Showing up on the list was Arsenal in third, Liverpool in sixth place, Chelsea in ninth, Tottenham Hotspur in 12th, and near the bottom in 19th place is Manchester City.
The last team on the list was a surprise as Newcastle United made the list even though they are currently in relegation for the Championship.
Forbes business sports writer, Peter Schwartz, stated that Manchester United deserves a bit of praise for its continual resilience and its place as one of the largest global sporting brands.
Schwartz continued to say that the club has made itself one of the first class brands out of all world sporting brands with great marketing and new kit deals that have helped them continue to hold their status even in the face of the global recession.
Over the last season the twenty most valuable clubs together generated a total of £422m in operating income and combined revenues of £3.57b.