LONDON (dpa-AFX) – The return of fans to the stadiums has raised the income of the European football aristocracy to pre-Corona levels. According to audit and consultancy firm Deloitte, the top 20 clubs in terms of revenue generated a total of 9.2 billion euros in the 2021/22 season. This represented a 13 percent increase in revenue compared to the previous season (€8.2 billion). Match revenue increased from €111 million from the 2020/21 season to €1.4 billion last season.
This is according to the 26th edition of Deloitte’s Football Money League report, published in London on Thursday. The record mark from the 2018/19 season of 9.3 billion euros has just been missed. “European football is on a good path. It is possible that the total revenue of the top 20 European football clubs will already touch the 10 billion mark next year,” said Stefan Ludwig, partner and head of the Sport Business Group.
At the beginning of 2020, the Corona pandemic had also fully hit professional football. In many countries, matches were canceled or held without spectators. In addition, media revenue was lost. This led to a general drop in income, even for the best clubs.
In the money rankings, the German record champions Bayern Munich and Borussia Dortmund slipped: With a total income of 653.6 million euros (previous season: 611.4 million), the Munich club lost three places and is now in -sixth place. BVB ranks 13th with sales of 356.9 million euros (337.6 million). Last year, the Westphalians were twelfth. Bayern and Borussia are the only German clubs in the top 20. One reason for their decline is that stadiums were opened earlier in other leagues.
The Premier League once again dominates the “Money League” and is represented by eleven clubs at once. English champions Manchester City remained at the top with 731 million euros (644.9 million). In the previous season, coach Pep Guardiola’s club had taken first place among football’s financial giants for the first time. Real Madrid remain in second place with 713.8 million euros (640.7 million). The new financier in third place is Jürgen Klopp’s Liverpool FC with 701.7 million euros (550.4 million)./clu/DP/zb
