World's richest clubs: Liverpool best in the Premier League as Man Utd suffer worst-ever result

Martin Macdonald

• Updated: 22 Jan 2026 15:49 GMT
• 4 min read

News

Manchester United feature in their lowest-ever position in the Deloitte Football Money League table for 2024/25, with Liverpool the best-performing Premier League side for the first time in their history.

Real Madrid have once again been named as the club with the biggest revenue from the prior year, with Barcelona in second, Bayern Munich in third, Paris Saint-Germain in fourth and Liverpool in fifth.

Los Blancos made around €1.16 billion in revenue in 2025 which is an increase of 11% from the previous campaign. They are the only club in the world that has posted revenue of over a billion euros and top the list for the third year running.

Barcelona generated €975m, Bayern €861m, PSG €837m and Liverpool €836m.

The Blaugrana moved into the top three for the first time since 2019/20 despite playing away from Camp Nou last season due to renovations.

The two Manchester clubs have suffered the worst drops since 2024.

For 2024/25, Man City are in sixth position, a drop from second in 2023/24, while Man Utd are in eighth, a drop from fourth.

In fact, the Red Devils have suffered their worst-ever placement in the Deloitte Football Money League and it comes after a 2024/25 campaign in which they had their worst-ever finish in the Premier League (15th).

Next season doesn't look too promising either, as they have no European football in 2025/26 and exited early from both the FA Cup and League Cup. They are only set to play 40 matches this season which also decreases Matchday revenue as well as broadcast.

"The clubs with the biggest football club brands and position in the market have an opportunity to broaden their reach and offer more to fans on a matchday, offer more to fans on a non-matchday, and become a more 365-days-a-year touch point," said Tim Bridge, the Sports Business Group Leader at Deloitte.

"United are probably only just starting that journey now, because of the reported stadium development.

"If you went back 10 or 15 years, and you looked at Manchester United's matchday revenue it was the industry leader. If you looked at their ability to generate commercial revenue, it was the benchmark by which everybody then went to market and set their strategy. I don't think that remains the case.

"The opportunity remains for Manchester United. They are arguably still the biggest global football club brand, and therefore they have the opportunity to maximise that in a way that is only possible for a select few.

"But to do that requires fit-for-purpose facilities. As the industry evolves, clubs should ask themselves whether there is a need to rethink how they engage with fans and how that relationship works. With reports of the new stadium, it is clear they have started to do some of that, so it's very clear they're thinking in that way. Their timing of making that change is behind Real Madrid and Barcelona, but the opportunity remains."

For the first eight years the Deloitte Football Money League was produced, Man Utd topped the rankings from 1996/97 to 2003/04.

There are nine English clubs in the top 20 highest-earning teams - Liverpool, Man City, Man Utd, Arsenal, Tottenham, Chelsea, Aston Villa, Newcastle and West Ham.

Overall, the revenue of the top 20 clubs went up by around11% to a record €12.4bn.

Commercial revenues went up to €5.3bn from €4.9bn euros - an increase "driven by a shift in clubs' business models focusing on the increased use of stadia and surrounding areas on non-matchdays, an increase in sponsorship revenue, and improved retail performance".

Taking into account Real Madrid's commercial revenue alone, that would be enough to put them in the top 10 on the list.

Broadcast revenue was boosted by 10% due to the Club World Cup in the United States in the summer, but Tim Bridge of Deloitte has warned that a balance must be struck between increasing revenue and over-exposure, amid complaints from players about the ever-increasing football schedule.

"On-pitch performance remains a primary driver for clubs to progress to the upper echelons of the ranking, with many clubs benefiting from new and expanded European and international club tournaments," said Bridge.

"In the 2024-25 season, Money League clubs on average played more games than the season before, reflecting the growth of competitions and sporting performance of many in the ranking.

"While this presents substantial financial opportunity, a balance must be struck between revenue optimisation and protecting both the value of the on-field product and player welfare amidst ever-increasing fixture schedules."

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