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The World's Most Valuable Sports Teams
No. 1: Manchester United
Sport: soccer
Value: $1.83 billion
Owner: Glazer family
Revenue: $459 million
The Red Devils lay claim to having 333 million followers and 139 million core fans worldwide.
No. 2: Dallas Cowboys
Sport: football
Value: $1.65 billion
Owner: Jerral Jones
Revenue: $280 million
New stadium landed NCAA Men's Final Four, NBA All-Star Game and Super Bowl.
No. 3: New York Yankees
Sport: baseball
Value: $1.6 billion
Owner: Steinbrenner family
Revenue: $441 million
Leveraged most valuable brand in sports to create rich cable network and venue hospitality business.
No. 4: Washington Redskins
Sport: football
Value: $1.55 billion
Owner: Daniel Snyder
Revenue: $345 million
Average operating income of $77 million over past five seasons is the highest in the NFL.
No. 5: New England Patriots
Sport: football
Value: $1.36 billion
Owner: Robert Kraft
Revenue: $302 million
Built Patriot Place adjacent to Gillette Stadium, featuring shopping, dining and entertainment.
No. 6: Real Madrid
Sport: soccer
Value: $1.32 billion
Owner: club members
Revenue: $563 million
Generates $225 million annually from broadcasting fees, the most in sports.
No. 7: New York Giants
Sport: football
Value: $1.18 billion
Owner: John Mara, Steven Tisch
Revenue: $230 million
Sold naming rights to practice facility for more than $35 million over 15 years and is close to selling out season tickets for new stadium.
No. 8: Arsenal
Sport: soccer
Value: $1.18 billion
Owner: Stanley Kroenke
Revenue: $369 million
Arsenal's $102 million operating income trailed only Man U among English Premier League teams last year.
No. 9: New York Jets
Sport: football
Value: $1.17 billion
Owner: Robert Wood Johnson IV
Revenue: $227 million
Having difficulty selling personal seat licenses for season tickets at new stadium.
No. 10: Houston Texans
Sport: football
Value: $1.15 billion
Owner: Robert McNair
Revenue: $256 million
Stadium naming rights deal with Reliant is the richest in the NFL, worth $300 million.
No. 11: Philadelphia Eagles
Sport: football
Value: $1.12 billion
Owner: Jeffrey Lurie
Revenue: $250 million
Season ticket renewal rate has been running over 99%, one of the highest in the NFL.
No. 12: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Sport: football
Value: $1.09 billion
Owner: Glazer family
Revenue: $241 million
Poor play on the field and reduced spending on players has lowered demand for tickets.
No. 13: Chicago Bears
Sport: football
Value: $1.08 billion
Owner: McCaskey family
Revenue: $241 million
Successfully markets season tickets via e-mails with video and personal delivery.
No. 14: Denver Broncos
Sport: football
Value: $1.08 billion
Owner: Patrick Bowlen
Revenue: $240 million
Popularity has fallen from fourth to 12th among NFL fans since John Elway retired following 1998 season.
No. 15: Baltimore Ravens
Sport: football
Value: $1.08 billion
Owner: Stephen Bisciotti
Revenue: $240 million
Team has never been able to build up any fan base outside its market, despite capturing 2001 Super Bowl.
No. 16: Ferrari
Sport: motorsports
Value: $1.05 billion
Owner: Fiat Group
Revenue: $308 million
Ferrari, the winningest team in Formula 1 history, opened 34 stores in four continents to sell Ferrari-branded goods, generating upward of $100 million in revenue.
No. 17: Carolina Panthers
Sport: football
Value: $1.05 billion
Owner: Jerry Richardson
Revenue: $238 million
First team in modern era of NFL to privately finance new stadium with big contribution from naming rights and personal seat licenses.
No. 18: Cleveland Browns
Sport: football
Value: $1.03 billion
Owner: Randolph Lerner
Revenue: $235 million
Have ranked in bottom half of the NFL seven of past eight seasons on ratio of wins-per-player cost.
No. 19: Kansas City Chiefs
Sport: football
Value: $1.03 billion
Owner: Hunt family
Revenue: $228 million
Arrowhead Stadium has undergone a $375 million renovation over the past few years.
No. 20: Indianapolis Colts
Sport: football
Value: $1.03 billion
Owner: James Irsay
Revenue: $233 million
Eccentric owner gambled and won by concentrating payroll on marquee players like Peyton Manning.
No. 21: Pittsburgh Steelers
Sport: football
Value: $1.02 billion
Owner: Daniel Rooney, Art Rooney II
Revenue: $235 million
Small-market team with high brand value of $88 million has been among the most popular NFL teams over the past 25 seasons.
No. 22: Green Bay Packers
Sport: football
Value: $1.02 billion
Owner: shareholder owned
Revenue: $232 million
Rock-solid waiting list of 70,000 for season tickets is most devoted market in NFL.
No. 23: Miami Dolphins
Sport: football
Value: $1.02 billion
Owner: Stephen Ross
Revenue: $242 million
Recent minority owners like Gloria and Emilio Estefan and Marc Anthony and Jennifer Lopez brought in to expand fan base.
No. 24: Tennessee Titans
Sport: football
Value: $1 billion
Owner: Kenneth Adams Jr.
Revenue: $232 million
Highly profitable team delivers consistently good record despite modest payroll.
No. 25: Barcelona
Sport: soccer
Value: $1 billion
Owner: club members
Revenue: $513 million
Barca has won the Spanish cup more times than any other team, and earns $220 million in broadcasting revenue.
No. 26: Seattle Seahawks
Sport: football
Value: $994 million
Owner: Paul Allen
Revenue: $231 million
Average ticket price is $14 below NFL average, which helps team sell out every game.
No. 27: Bayern Munich
Sport: soccer
Value: $990 million
Owner: club members
Revenue: $406 million
The top German team also has one of Europe's most dramatic stadiums.
No. 28: Cincinnati Bengals
Sport: football
Value: $953 million
Owner: Michael Brown
Revenue: $222 million
Locals still harbor animosity at owner over financing of stadium and off-field behavior of players, accounting for brand value of just $57 million.
No. 29: New Orleans Saints
Sport: football
Value: $942 million
Owner: Thomas Benson
Revenue: $232 million
Franchise has gotten a second life with Super Bowl victory and operating rights to its stadium.
No. 30: Arizona Cardinals
Sport: football
Value: $935 million
Owner: William Bidwill
Revenue: $223 million
Trip to Super Bowl following 2008 season enabled team to increase ticket prices 3% while most kept prices flat.
No. 31: San Diego Chargers
Sport: football
Value: $917 million
Owner: Alexander Spanos
Revenue: $224 million
Elite team on the field generates subpar revenue because of its antiquated stadium.
No. 32: St. Louis Rams
Sport: football
Value: $913 million
Owner: Chip Rosenbloom, Stanley Kroenke
Revenue: $217 million
Team can break lease at stadium after 2014 season if not in top 25% in NFL revenue.
No. 33: Buffalo Bills
Sport: football
Value: $909 million
Owner: Ralph Wilson Jr.
Revenue: $222 million
Playing one regular-season game annually at Rogers Centre in Toronto since 2008 to increase fan base.
No. 34: San Francisco 49ers
Sport: football
Value: $875 million
Owner: Denise DeBartolo York, John York
Revenue: $214 million
Close to finalizing deal for new, $937 million stadium in Santa Clara, a short drive from downtown San Francisco.
No. 35: Boston Red Sox
Sport: baseball
Value: $870 million
Owner: John Henry, Thomas Werner
Revenue: $266 million
Red Sox had the highest local television ratings (9.5) in baseball in 2009.
No. 36: Detroit Lions
Sport: football
Value: $867 million
Owner: William Clay Ford
Revenue: $206 million
Had five of last six home games blacked out in local television market in 2009 as fed-up fans refused to support team.
No. 37: Jacksonville Jaguars
Sport: football
Value: $866 million
Owner: Wayne Weaver
Revenue: $217 million
Owner looking to move or sell team due to low ticket and sponsorship revenue.
No. 38: New York Mets
Sport: baseball
Value: $858 million
Owner: Fred Wilpon
Revenue: $268 million
Was able to ink $400 million, 20-year stadium naming rights deal with Citigroup before banking industry collapse.
No. 39: Atlanta Falcons
Sport: football
Value: $856 million
Owner: Arthur Blank
Revenue: $214 million
With value of team maxed out at Georgia Dome, Blank sold minority interest to four investors last year.
No. 40: Minnesota Vikings
Sport: football
Value: $835 million
Owner: Zygmunt Wilf, Mark Wilf
Revenue: $209 million
The state legislature failed to move forward on a new stadium once again this year as the clock ticks on the Vikings' lease, which expires in 2011.
No. 41: Liverpool
Sport: soccer
Value: $822 million
Owner: George Gillett Jr., Thomas Hicks
Revenue: $304 million
The Reds have captured seven F.A. Cups and seven League Cups, helping the club consistently increase sponsorship revenue.
No. 42: McLaren Mercedes
Sport: motorsports
Value: $805 million
Owner: Ron Dennis, TAG Group
Revenue: $267 million
Mercedes is in the process of selling its stake in the team back to the McLaren Group since buying its own race team late last year.
No. 43: A.C. Milan
Sport: soccer
Value: $800 million
Owner: Silvio Berlusconi
Revenue: $276 million
The club's revenue fell by $54 million for the 2008-2009 season after it failed to qualify for the UEFA Champions League for the first time since 2001-2002.
No. 44: Oakland Raiders
Sport: football
Value: $797 million
Owner: Allen Davis
Revenue: $215 million
Relative value of team has eroded over past two decades because of lousy performance on gridiron and low stadium revenue.
No. 45: Los Angeles Dodgers
Sport: baseball
Value: $727 million
Owner: Frank McCourt
Revenue: $247 million
In 2009 became the first team other than the Yankees to lead baseball in attendance since 2002.
No. 46: Chicago Cubs
Sport: baseball
Value: $726 million
Owner: Ricketts family
Revenue: $246 million
Last year the Ricketts family paid $845 million for the Cubs, Wrigley Field and 25% stake in a regional sports channel.
No. 47: Juventus
Sport: soccer
Value: $656 million
Owner: Agnelli family
Revenue: $285 million
On schedule to complete a state-of-the-art, 40,000-fan capacity stadium by June 2011.
No. 48: Chelsea
Sport: soccer
Value: $646 million
Owner: Roman Abramovich
Revenue: $340 million
Last year the club extended its jersey deal with Samsung, worth more than $16 million annually, through 2012-2013 season.
No. 49: Los Angeles Lakers
Sport: basketball
Value: $607 million
Owner: Gerald Buss, Philip Anschutz
Revenue: $209 million
Consistently competes for title with superstar Kobe Bryant and plays in best arena in North America.
No. 50: New York Knicks
Sport: basketball
Value: $586 million
Owner: Madison Square Garden
Revenue: $202 million
MSG, which includes the New York Rangers, the Garden and a regional sports channel, has a market value of $1.5 billion.
No. 1: Manchester United
Sport: soccer
Value: $1.83 billion
Owner: Glazer family
Revenue: $459 million
The Red Devils lay claim to having 333 million followers and 139 million core fans worldwide.
No. 2: Dallas Cowboys
Sport: football
Value: $1.65 billion
Owner: Jerral Jones
Revenue: $280 million
New stadium landed NCAA Men's Final Four, NBA All-Star Game and Super Bowl.
No. 3: New York Yankees
Sport: baseball
Value: $1.6 billion
Owner: Steinbrenner family
Revenue: $441 million
Leveraged most valuable brand in sports to create rich cable network and venue hospitality business.
No. 4: Washington Redskins
Sport: football
Value: $1.55 billion
Owner: Daniel Snyder
Revenue: $345 million
Average operating income of $77 million over past five seasons is the highest in the NFL.
No. 5: New England Patriots
Sport: football
Value: $1.36 billion
Owner: Robert Kraft
Revenue: $302 million
Built Patriot Place adjacent to Gillette Stadium, featuring shopping, dining and entertainment.
No. 6: Real Madrid
Sport: soccer
Value: $1.32 billion
Owner: club members
Revenue: $563 million
Generates $225 million annually from broadcasting fees, the most in sports.
No. 7: New York Giants
Sport: football
Value: $1.18 billion
Owner: John Mara, Steven Tisch
Revenue: $230 million
Sold naming rights to practice facility for more than $35 million over 15 years and is close to selling out season tickets for new stadium.
No. 8: Arsenal
Sport: soccer
Value: $1.18 billion
Owner: Stanley Kroenke
Revenue: $369 million
Arsenal's $102 million operating income trailed only Man U among English Premier League teams last year.
No. 9: New York Jets
Sport: football
Value: $1.17 billion
Owner: Robert Wood Johnson IV
Revenue: $227 million
Having difficulty selling personal seat licenses for season tickets at new stadium.
No. 10: Houston Texans
Sport: football
Value: $1.15 billion
Owner: Robert McNair
Revenue: $256 million
Stadium naming rights deal with Reliant is the richest in the NFL, worth $300 million.
No. 11: Philadelphia Eagles
Sport: football
Value: $1.12 billion
Owner: Jeffrey Lurie
Revenue: $250 million
Season ticket renewal rate has been running over 99%, one of the highest in the NFL.
No. 12: Tampa Bay Buccaneers
Sport: football
Value: $1.09 billion
Owner: Glazer family
Revenue: $241 million
Poor play on the field and reduced spending on players has lowered demand for tickets.
No. 13: Chicago Bears
Sport: football
Value: $1.08 billion
Owner: McCaskey family
Revenue: $241 million
Successfully markets season tickets via e-mails with video and personal delivery.
No. 14: Denver Broncos
Sport: football
Value: $1.08 billion
Owner: Patrick Bowlen
Revenue: $240 million
Popularity has fallen from fourth to 12th among NFL fans since John Elway retired following 1998 season.
No. 15: Baltimore Ravens
Sport: football
Value: $1.08 billion
Owner: Stephen Bisciotti
Revenue: $240 million
Team has never been able to build up any fan base outside its market, despite capturing 2001 Super Bowl.
No. 16: Ferrari
Sport: motorsports
Value: $1.05 billion
Owner: Fiat Group
Revenue: $308 million
Ferrari, the winningest team in Formula 1 history, opened 34 stores in four continents to sell Ferrari-branded goods, generating upward of $100 million in revenue.
No. 17: Carolina Panthers
Sport: football
Value: $1.05 billion
Owner: Jerry Richardson
Revenue: $238 million
First team in modern era of NFL to privately finance new stadium with big contribution from naming rights and personal seat licenses.
No. 18: Cleveland Browns
Sport: football
Value: $1.03 billion
Owner: Randolph Lerner
Revenue: $235 million
Have ranked in bottom half of the NFL seven of past eight seasons on ratio of wins-per-player cost.
No. 19: Kansas City Chiefs
Sport: football
Value: $1.03 billion
Owner: Hunt family
Revenue: $228 million
Arrowhead Stadium has undergone a $375 million renovation over the past few years.
No. 20: Indianapolis Colts
Sport: football
Value: $1.03 billion
Owner: James Irsay
Revenue: $233 million
Eccentric owner gambled and won by concentrating payroll on marquee players like Peyton Manning.
No. 21: Pittsburgh Steelers
Sport: football
Value: $1.02 billion
Owner: Daniel Rooney, Art Rooney II
Revenue: $235 million
Small-market team with high brand value of $88 million has been among the most popular NFL teams over the past 25 seasons.
No. 22: Green Bay Packers
Sport: football
Value: $1.02 billion
Owner: shareholder owned
Revenue: $232 million
Rock-solid waiting list of 70,000 for season tickets is most devoted market in NFL.
No. 23: Miami Dolphins
Sport: football
Value: $1.02 billion
Owner: Stephen Ross
Revenue: $242 million
Recent minority owners like Gloria and Emilio Estefan and Marc Anthony and Jennifer Lopez brought in to expand fan base.
No. 24: Tennessee Titans
Sport: football
Value: $1 billion
Owner: Kenneth Adams Jr.
Revenue: $232 million
Highly profitable team delivers consistently good record despite modest payroll.
No. 25: Barcelona
Sport: soccer
Value: $1 billion
Owner: club members
Revenue: $513 million
Barca has won the Spanish cup more times than any other team, and earns $220 million in broadcasting revenue.
No. 26: Seattle Seahawks
Sport: football
Value: $994 million
Owner: Paul Allen
Revenue: $231 million
Average ticket price is $14 below NFL average, which helps team sell out every game.
No. 27: Bayern Munich
Sport: soccer
Value: $990 million
Owner: club members
Revenue: $406 million
The top German team also has one of Europe's most dramatic stadiums.
No. 28: Cincinnati Bengals
Sport: football
Value: $953 million
Owner: Michael Brown
Revenue: $222 million
Locals still harbor animosity at owner over financing of stadium and off-field behavior of players, accounting for brand value of just $57 million.
No. 29: New Orleans Saints
Sport: football
Value: $942 million
Owner: Thomas Benson
Revenue: $232 million
Franchise has gotten a second life with Super Bowl victory and operating rights to its stadium.
No. 30: Arizona Cardinals
Sport: football
Value: $935 million
Owner: William Bidwill
Revenue: $223 million
Trip to Super Bowl following 2008 season enabled team to increase ticket prices 3% while most kept prices flat.
No. 31: San Diego Chargers
Sport: football
Value: $917 million
Owner: Alexander Spanos
Revenue: $224 million
Elite team on the field generates subpar revenue because of its antiquated stadium.
No. 32: St. Louis Rams
Sport: football
Value: $913 million
Owner: Chip Rosenbloom, Stanley Kroenke
Revenue: $217 million
Team can break lease at stadium after 2014 season if not in top 25% in NFL revenue.
No. 33: Buffalo Bills
Sport: football
Value: $909 million
Owner: Ralph Wilson Jr.
Revenue: $222 million
Playing one regular-season game annually at Rogers Centre in Toronto since 2008 to increase fan base.
No. 34: San Francisco 49ers
Sport: football
Value: $875 million
Owner: Denise DeBartolo York, John York
Revenue: $214 million
Close to finalizing deal for new, $937 million stadium in Santa Clara, a short drive from downtown San Francisco.
No. 35: Boston Red Sox
Sport: baseball
Value: $870 million
Owner: John Henry, Thomas Werner
Revenue: $266 million
Red Sox had the highest local television ratings (9.5) in baseball in 2009.
No. 36: Detroit Lions
Sport: football
Value: $867 million
Owner: William Clay Ford
Revenue: $206 million
Had five of last six home games blacked out in local television market in 2009 as fed-up fans refused to support team.
No. 37: Jacksonville Jaguars
Sport: football
Value: $866 million
Owner: Wayne Weaver
Revenue: $217 million
Owner looking to move or sell team due to low ticket and sponsorship revenue.
No. 38: New York Mets
Sport: baseball
Value: $858 million
Owner: Fred Wilpon
Revenue: $268 million
Was able to ink $400 million, 20-year stadium naming rights deal with Citigroup before banking industry collapse.
No. 39: Atlanta Falcons
Sport: football
Value: $856 million
Owner: Arthur Blank
Revenue: $214 million
With value of team maxed out at Georgia Dome, Blank sold minority interest to four investors last year.
No. 40: Minnesota Vikings
Sport: football
Value: $835 million
Owner: Zygmunt Wilf, Mark Wilf
Revenue: $209 million
The state legislature failed to move forward on a new stadium once again this year as the clock ticks on the Vikings' lease, which expires in 2011.
No. 41: Liverpool
Sport: soccer
Value: $822 million
Owner: George Gillett Jr., Thomas Hicks
Revenue: $304 million
The Reds have captured seven F.A. Cups and seven League Cups, helping the club consistently increase sponsorship revenue.
No. 42: McLaren Mercedes
Sport: motorsports
Value: $805 million
Owner: Ron Dennis, TAG Group
Revenue: $267 million
Mercedes is in the process of selling its stake in the team back to the McLaren Group since buying its own race team late last year.
No. 43: A.C. Milan
Sport: soccer
Value: $800 million
Owner: Silvio Berlusconi
Revenue: $276 million
The club's revenue fell by $54 million for the 2008-2009 season after it failed to qualify for the UEFA Champions League for the first time since 2001-2002.
No. 44: Oakland Raiders
Sport: football
Value: $797 million
Owner: Allen Davis
Revenue: $215 million
Relative value of team has eroded over past two decades because of lousy performance on gridiron and low stadium revenue.
No. 45: Los Angeles Dodgers
Sport: baseball
Value: $727 million
Owner: Frank McCourt
Revenue: $247 million
In 2009 became the first team other than the Yankees to lead baseball in attendance since 2002.
No. 46: Chicago Cubs
Sport: baseball
Value: $726 million
Owner: Ricketts family
Revenue: $246 million
Last year the Ricketts family paid $845 million for the Cubs, Wrigley Field and 25% stake in a regional sports channel.
No. 47: Juventus
Sport: soccer
Value: $656 million
Owner: Agnelli family
Revenue: $285 million
On schedule to complete a state-of-the-art, 40,000-fan capacity stadium by June 2011.
No. 48: Chelsea
Sport: soccer
Value: $646 million
Owner: Roman Abramovich
Revenue: $340 million
Last year the club extended its jersey deal with Samsung, worth more than $16 million annually, through 2012-2013 season.
No. 49: Los Angeles Lakers
Sport: basketball
Value: $607 million
Owner: Gerald Buss, Philip Anschutz
Revenue: $209 million
Consistently competes for title with superstar Kobe Bryant and plays in best arena in North America.
No. 50: New York Knicks
Sport: basketball
Value: $586 million
Owner: Madison Square Garden
Revenue: $202 million
MSG, which includes the New York Rangers, the Garden and a regional sports channel, has a market value of $1.5 billion.
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