FOOTBALL BUSINESS: Real Madrid, FC Barcelona most valuable brands

Top LaLiga clubs Real Madrid and Barcelona are the two most valuable football clubs in the world.  The two LaLiga clubs have topped Brand Finance’s latest rankings, with Real Madrid staying first and with Barça leapfrogging Manchester United into second.

For the second year in a row, Real Madrid lead the way as the most valuable football club brand in the world, closely followed by FC Barcelona, who have overtaken Manchester United to move from third in the 2019 edition to second in this year’s rankings.

According to this study from the prestigious consultancy firm Brand Finance, Real Madrid’s brand is valued at €1.419 billion, with FC Barcelona’s just €6 million behind on €1.413 billion. There’s then a sizeable drop-off to the rest of the top five, with third-placed Manchester United on €1.315 billion, fourth-placed Liverpool on €1.262 billion and fifth-placed Manchester City on €1.124 billion, LaLiga has stated in a Press release.

The report has highlighted the following key findings:

  • Real Madrid remain world’s most valuable football brand, but Barcelona narrow the gap to just €6 million
  • COVID-19 causes total brand value of top 50 clubs to decrease for the first time in 6 years – €751 million or 3.7% is knocked off
  • English clubs dominate the ranking with six brands in top 10 and 19 in top 50
  • Liverpool inches two spots up into 4th place, following historic Premier League win
  • Bundesliga’s 1. FC Köln is this year’s fastest-growing brand, followed by Leicester City and RB Leipzig – all recording over 40% growth
  • Tottenham Hotspur’s new stadium takes top spot in Buro Happold’s Venue Performance Rating

In addition to calculating brand value, Brand Finance’s report also assesses brand strength by attributing each football club a ‘Brand Strength Index’ score out of 100 based on metrics such as marketing investment, stakeholder equity and business performance. Real Madrid also lead this ranking with a score of 94.9, while FC Barcelona again come in a close second with a score of 93.6.

FOOTBALL BRAND VALUE REPORT

As Teresa de Lemus, managing director of Brand Finance Spain, said of the 150-page report: “There are two Spanish brands from the world of football who really make the overall Spanish brand shine and they are Real Madrid and FC Barcelona, the two most valuable and the two strongest brands in their sector on a global level. There is no doubt that Spanish sport is yet another thing for Spaniards to be proud of.”

It’s not only Real Madrid and FC Barcelona who are representing Spain and LaLiga in the latest Brand Finance top 50 for brand value. In total, eight LaLiga Santander clubs make the cut, with Atlético de Madrid (13), Sevilla FC (32), Valencia CF (36), Athletic Club (40), Villarreal CF (44) and Real Betis (50). The eight LaLiga clubs in the top 50 account for 20% of the sector’s total value, at a combined €3.938 billion.

With the exception of Real Madrid, who remain at the top of the pile, each LaLiga club in the 2020 top 50 has risen compared to their 2019 position, reflecting the rapid and continued growth of the LaLiga brand across the world.

LaLiga’s efforts to work with its clubs on their digitalisation and international growth have clearly helped boost the clubs’ brands. In fact, the average 2020 Brand Strength Index rating of Spanish clubs (79.0/100) is higher than that of any other country, including France (75.1), the UK (74.9), Italy (74.1) and Germany (73.2).

Admin Sportz Front

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