The soccer industry is booming: the top 20 clubs earned a record €12.4 billion
23 January 18:30
The 20 richest football clubs in the world earned a record €12.4 billion in the 2024/2025 season, which is 11% more than a year earlier. This is according to the annual Football Money League 2026 study prepared by consulting firm Deloitte, reports "Komersant Ukrainian".
Leaders of the ranking
For the third time in a row , Real Madrid topped the Football Money League ranking with revenues of nearly €1.2 billion. Deloitte attributes this primarily to a 23% increase in commercial revenues, in particular thanks to the sale of club merchandise and the conclusion of new partnership agreements.
Barcelona (€975 million) rose to second place, returning to the top three for the first time since the 2019/2020 season. The club’s revenues grew by 27%, which analysts attribute to the introduction of the Personal Seat Licenses (PSL) model amid the stadium’s reconstruction.
Bayern Munich took third place (€861 million).
Paris and Liverpool: the role of sporting results
Despite the growing role of business models, sporting success remains a key factor in the ranking, Deloitte emphasizes.
The winner of the 2024/2025 Champions League, Paris Saint-Germain, rose to fourth place (€837 million), while English Premier League champions Liverpool closed out the top five (€836 million) after returning to the Champions League and a successful season in the Premier League.
Commercial revenue is the main source of income
The commercial revenues of Money League clubs remain the largest for the third year in a row. In the 2024/2025 season, they amounted to €5.3 billion, or 43% of total revenues.
Deloitte explains this by a change in the approach to infrastructure management: stadiums are increasingly operating as multifunctional spaces, and clubs are actively developing sponsorship programs and retail sales.
Matchday and TV rights: who is growing faster
Matchday revenues are growing the fastest, at 16% per season. They brought clubs €2.4 billion (19% of total revenue).
This growth is attributed to improvements in the fan experience, the development of premium services, and the sale of VIP seats based on the PSL model.
Revenues from television broadcasts also grew by 10%, accounting for 38% of total revenues. The decisive factor was the expansion of the FIFA Club World Cup 2025, in which 10 clubs from the Money League ranking took part.
The season’s outsiders
Not all the big clubs were able to maintain their positions. Manchester City (€829 million) dropped six places due to weaker results in the Premier League and early elimination from the Champions League.
An even sharper decline was recorded by Manchester United, which fell from fourth to eighth place. The club’s television revenues fell from €258 million to €206 million, primarily due to its absence from the Champions League and its 15th place finish in the English Premier League.
