The Dallas Cowboys were ranked the world’s most valuable sports team for a fourth consecutive year according to an annual list published by Forbes on Monday that was dominated by National Football League clubs.
The NFL’s Cowboys, who unseated Spanish soccer club Real Madrid for top spot on the list in 2016, were valued at $5 billion (€4.46 billion), a 4 per cent rise when compared to last year, Forbes said in a statement.
Major League Baseball’s New York Yankees, who last year enjoyed a 10 per cent jump in attendance along with strong ratings on the team’s YES Network, moved up three spots to sit second on the list with a value of $4.6 billion )€4.1 billion).
La Liga sides Real Madrid ($4.2 billion; €3.75 billion) and Barcelona ($4.02 billion; €3.6 billion) and the National Basketball Association’s New York Knicks ($4 billion; €3.57 billion) rounded out the top five.
Manchester United are sixth in the list at $3.81 billion (€3.4 billion) after suffering an 8 per cent drop in value but are still the only Premier League side in the top 10.
Champions Manchester City are in 25th position ($2.69 billion; €2.4 billion) after a rise in value of 9 per cent, while Chelsea enjoyed a 25 per cent growth in value to ($2.58 billion; €2.3 billion) and are 32nd in the list.
Arsenal in 42nd spot ($2.27 billion; $2.2025 billion) and Liverpool ($2.18 billion; €1.94 billion) in 45th are the other Premier League teams in the top 50.
“The values of teams in major sports leagues are booming thanks to sky-high TV deals, both local and national,” said Kurt Badenhausen, senior editor, Forbes Media. “And with revenue growing faster than player salaries, franchises are more profitable than they have ever been.”
Teams from the NFL, whose lucrative broadcast contracts are not comparable to any other league, accounted for 26 of the 50 teams on the list, down from 29 teams a year ago as some other major sports chipped away at its dominance.
The NBA had nine teams on the list, one more than last year, while European soccer and MLB each had one more team represented this time around with eight and seven, respectively.
No ice hockey, Formula One or Nascar teams made the cut.
