Friday 4 May 2007

World's Most Valuable - Football Teams & Players



Since I've decided not to comment on Kenyan soccer, here's a preview of the most valuable clubs in the world and a list showing the richest players too. In a survey done by Forbes, the top team is Manchester United. This is according to the 2005-2006 season.
Given the take-over by the Glazers and the dominance in the last season of the English premier League, I guess it's justified. They also enjoy some of the most loyal fans and have the best attendance in terms of gate collections. They also boast of the widest fan base. They have a division that does merchandising that accounts for between 3-6 % of revenue. It's worth $1.453 billion (approx KShs. 101.71 billion)with revenues of $ 310 million( approx Kshs.21.7 billion)
The second team in the list is Real Madrid having taken advantage of a star-studded squad in the last three seasons. But the results have not been very good ,meaning reduced gate collections and also the early exit from the Champions League has meant reduced TV ratings.
The third (suprise, suprise !) is Arsenal. This was after last year's appearance in the Champions League Final as well as the building of the new Emirates Stadium. This improved their gate collections making them only second to Old Trafford in terms of filling the stadium.
Complete List:
1.Manchester United
2.Real Madrid
3.AC Milan
4.Arsenal
5.Bayern Munich
6.Juventus
7.Chelsea
8.Internazionale Milan
9.Barcelona
10.Liverpool


As for the Richest player, Ronaldinho replaced David Beckham at the No. 1 slot. Given the pre-World Cup success that 'Gaucho' had with the win in the Champions League and the Spanish League, it was only a matter of time.
This might a temporary situation since David Beckham has signed a summer deal with Major League Soccer side L.A. Galaxy . This will surely enhance his image as a sporting icon. The third on the list though this is a suprise even to my person is Ronaldo( A C Milan).
Complete list:
1.Ronaldinho- $ 29.5 million
2.David Beckham- $29.1 million
3.Ronaldo-$22.1 million
4.Wayne Rooney-$20.4 million
5.Michael Ballack-$19.1 million
6.Thierry Henry-
7.Zinedine Zidane(retired)
8.Fabio Cannavaro
9.John Terry
10.Steven Gerrard
More details ,check www.forbes.com/lists/2006/34/340009.html
I'm sure these figures have changed not just for the clubs but even for the players earnings. The Champions League has been a real money-maker for the clubs and is truly lucrative for European clubs. It also shows the level of commercialisation that has taken sport which ought to be a future for the good of the sportsmen as well as the clubs.
Scratch,scratch....KFF can you hear me ?

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