Top 20 Most Valuable Sports Franchises In The World: 2015 List

Real Madrid have retained their number one spot in Forbes 2015 list of the top 50 most valuable sports teams in the world for a 3rd straight year. According to the American business magazine, the 10-time European Cup winners Real Madrid head the world rankings with a value of $3.26 billion, ahead of the NFL’s Dallas Cowboys, and Major League Baseball’s New York Yankees — both valued at $3.20 billion.

Spanish soccer club Real Madrid’s great rivals Barcelona ($3.16 billion) and England’s Manchester United ($3.10 billion) were 4th and 5th.

The National Football League (NFL) led all sports with 20 franchises in the top 50, followed by Major League Baseball (MLB) with 12 franchises, the National Basketball Association (NBA) with 10 franchises and soccer with 7 franchises. Formula One’s Ferrari ($1.35 billion) were ranked 32nd.

The top 20 most valuable sports teams in the world – 2015 10 Most Valuable Sports Franchises:

1. Real Madrid (football) – $3.26 billion
1-year change: -5%
Owner: Club members

2. Dallas Cowboys (NFL) – $3.20 billion  
1-year change: 39%
Owner: Jerry Jones

2. New York Yankees (baseball) – $3.20 billion
1-year change: 28%
Owner: Steinbrenner family

4. Barcelona (football) – $3.16 billion
1-year change: -1%
Owner: Club members

5. Manchester United (football) – $3.10 billion  
1-year change: 10%
Owner: Glazer family

6. Los Angeles Lakers (NBA) – $2.60 billion   
1-year change: 93%
Owners: Jerry Buss Family Trusts, Philip Anschutz

6. New England Patriots (NFL) – $2.60 billion
1-year change: 44%
Owner: Robert Kraft

8. New York Knicks (NBA) – $2.50 billion
1-year change: 79%
Owner: Madison Square Garden Co.

9. Los Angeles Dodgers (baseball) – $2.40 billion   
1-year change: 20%
Owner: Guggenheim Baseball Management

9. Washington Redskins (NFL) – $2.40 billion
1-year change: 41%
Owner: Daniel Snyder

11. Bayern Munich
Value: $2.35 billion
1-year change: 27%
Owner: Club members

12. Boston Red Sox
Value: $2.1 billion
1-year change: 40%
Owners: John Henry, Thomas Werner

12. New York Giants
Value: $2.1 billion
1-year change: 35%
Owners: John Mara, Steven Tisch

14. Chicago Bulls
Value: $2 billion
1-year change: 100%
Owner: Jerry Reinsdorf

14. San Francisco Giants
Value: $2 billion
1-year change: 100%
Owner: Charles Johnson

16. Houston Texans
Value: $1.85 billion
1-year change: 28%
Owner: Robert McNair

17. Chicago Cubs
Value: $1.8 billion
1-year change: 50%
Owner: Ricketts Family

17. New York Jets
Value: $1.8 billion
1-year change: 30%
Owner: Robert Wood Johnson IV

19. Philadelphia Eagles
Value: $1.75 billion
1-year change: 33%
Owner: Jeffrey Lurie

20. Boston Celtics
Value: $1.7 billion
1-year change: 94%
Owners: Wycliffe & Irving Grousbeck, Robert Epstein, Stephen Pagliuca