To find out which European clubs are generating the most money from jersey and product sales, go no further than the most recent UEFA financial report. But shockingly, Manchester City, who just won a treble, aren’t one of them.
In the age of FFP, a club’s financial stability and ability to invest in the future depend on the strength of their jersey sales. Of course, not every club reaps the same rewards.
November 2023 was a record-setting month for Manchester City in Premier League revenue, coming in at $900 million. That same year, they also won the Treble and went on to win the Club World Cup in December.
Pep Guardiola’s Citizens, on the other hand, did not place in the top ten teams in terms of revenue generated from merchandise sales, which includes the crucial jerseys.
Barcelona, the Spanish powerhouse, made $193 million from jersey and clothing sales, $26 million more than Real Madrid, their La Liga rivals. Both Spanish teams have long been beloved by football fans, which has helped them get to the top of the list.
Third place went to Bundesliga powerhouse Bayern Munich, who earned $159 million. On the other hand, of the six Premier League clubs that placed, five finished in the top 10. Liverpool topped the list with $143 million in merchandise sales, $2.1 million more than Manchester United, their northern rivals.
With a total of $105 million in jerseys and other merchandise sales, PSG ranked sixth. This puts them ahead of Chelsea ($94 million) and Arsenal ($96 million), two London clubs. The last two teams in the top 10, Juventus of Italy and Tottenham of the Premier League, both earned $80 million from product sales.
Manchester City made $79 million from the sale of shirts and goods, narrowly missing the top ten. As a result, they are now ranked higher by UEFA than clubs like Borussia Dortmund, Ajax, and AC Milan.
Rounding out the top 20 are teams with strong fan bases, such as Galatasaray, Leeds United, Celtic, Fenerbahce, Eintracht Frankfurt, and Inter Milan.
When Manchester City reported its record revenue of $900 million at the end of 2023, it was an increase from $774 million the year before. It made them the second-highest-paid team in the world, behind only Real Madrid.
While spending a lot more on players like Erling Haaland, the Citizens almost quadrupled their earnings at the same time, going from $60m to $101m.
Meanwhile, Tottenham earn more than any other Premier League team each match, according to a UEFA study that came out earlier this week. Earlier this week, the governing body published a financial report, which the north London club will find very pleasing to read.
Taking into consideration gate income, money spent by spectators at games, and the amount it costs teams to stage matches, financial expert Kieran Maguire concluded that Spurs earn $6m per matchday.
With these numbers, it’s clear that Spurs’ 2019 move to their new 62,850-seater stadium was a wise decision. This has propelled them to the status of England’s largest Premier League stadium.
PHOTOS: IMAGO.
