NEW YORK
Real Madrid has retained its place as the world’s most valuable football club, U.S. business magazine Forbes said Wednesday.
The value of the Spanish giant fell 5 percent to $3.3 billion compared to a year earlier, but its $746 million in revenue, the most of any sports team in the world, kept it at the top of the list for a third consecutive year.
The 20 most valuable football are now worth an average of $1.2 billion, 11 percent more than last year and 84 percent higher than five years ago, Forbes said in a statement.
FC Barcelona ranked second for a second straight year with a valuation of $3.2 billion, followed by Manchester United, worth $3.1 billion.
Bayern Munich, worth $2.4 billion, and Manchester City, $1.4 billion, rounded out the top five.
Forbes said Manchester City rose the most in value in the past year, increasing 59 percent.
Fellow Premier League side, Chelsea, has its value soar 58 percent to $1.4 billion compared to a year earlier. Chelsea, which finished atop the Premier League in 2015, rank sixth on the list.
Turkish club Galatasaray is in the top 20 for a second year in a row, although its value fell 15 percent to $294 million.
The veteran continental contender, ranked 16th last year, is now the world's 20th most valuable football team after a disappointing UEFA Champions League campaign.
There are four Italian teams –- Juventus, AC Milan, Inter Milan and Napoli -- on the top 20 list, but none ranks higher than ninth.
The magazine said the once great brand of Serie A has been diminished during the past decade "from scandals, antiquated stadiums, bloody balance sheets and a decline in talent on the pitch."
