Where does a football club's money come from, and which clubs earn the most?
Real Madrid topped Deloitte's Football Money League with €1.161 billion in 2024/25, more than double what made it the first club past €500 million.
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A football club earns its money in three main ways: matchday income from people who come to the stadium, commercial income from sponsors and merchandise, and the money that leagues and competitions pay out, which includes the television deals that make up a large portion of club revenues. The balance between the three differs from club to club.
The yearly scoreboard of who earns the most is the Deloitte Football Money League. It ranks the twenty top football clubs by generated from football operations. It is produced by the professional services firm Deloitte and released in early February each year, describing the season most recently finished.
In the edition covering 2024/25, Real Madrid came first for the third year in a row, with €1.161 billion, according to the club's own announcement of the report. Real Madrid quotes Deloitte as saying the club generated €594 million in and €233 million in . Back in the 2011–12 table, Real Madrid had become the first team to generate over €500 million. The 2024/25 figure is more than double that.
Two of Real Madrid's revenue lines, 2024/25
€ million
| Revenue | |
|---|---|
| Commercial | 594 € million |
| Matchday | 233 € million |
Stadiums can change a club's fortunes, as Arsenal found. In 2006–07 their move to the Emirates Stadium transformed their revenues and moved them up to fifth place.
Television has been the other big engine in England. TV deals make up a large portion of Premier League clubs' revenues, and by the end of 2013–14 all 20 of its clubs were in Deloitte's global top 40, largely as a result of increased broadcasting .
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Recap
A club's income comes from the gate, the shop and the league's TV money.
💡 A trick to remember it · Think of three taps filling one bucket: the turnstile, the shirt shop and the television.
Surprising fact · Real Madrid's 2024/25 revenue of €1.161 billion is more than twice the €500 million it first passed in 2011–12.
Sources (4)
No source, no claim. Every fact in this lesson (9 claims) cites at least one of these.