Real Madrid first club to generate €1 billion revenue in a season, Deloitte says

Real Madrid became the first soccer team to register €1 billion ($1.04 billion) in revenue in a single season in 2023-24, with the Spanish side topping the Deloitte Football Money League as the world’s highest revenue-generating club once again.

Real Madrid had overtaken Manchester City to return to the summit after they generated total revenue of €831 million in the 2022-23 season.

Three trophies in the 2023-24 campaign – including LaLiga and the Champions League – plus increased matchday revenue following the completion of renovation works at the Bernabeu Stadium ensured they stayed top of the list.

Deloitte said Real’s matchday revenue doubled to €248 million while a new sleeve sponsorship and increased merchandise sales produced commercial revenue of €482 million – a 19 per cent increase.

The report also said that the top 20 revenue generating clubs in the world made a record €11.2 billion in the 2023-24 season thanks to record matchday, broadcast and commercial revenues.

Real’s revenue dwarfs that of even City, who remain in second place in the Money League with €838 million in revenue.

Although City beat their own revenue record and remain the highest revenue-generating club in the lucrative English Premier League, the gap between first and second (€208 million) has never been bigger.

Paris St Germain (€806 million), Manchester United (€771 million) and Bayern Munich (€765 million) round out the top five.

The need for European soccer was highlighted by Juventus’ fall from 11th to 16th after the Serie A side were excluded from European competition in 2023-24 over breaches of Uefa’s Club Licensing and Financial Fair Play rules.

On the other hand, clubs like Arsenal (€717 million), Borussia Dortmund (€514 million), Newcastle United (€372 million) and Aston Villa (€310 million) grew revenues by playing in various European competitions.

“While commercial revenue dominates the income of the top 10 Money League clubs, broadcast income remains crucial for teams in the second half of the rankings,” Tim Bridge, lead partner in the Deloitte Sports Business Group, said.

“As competitions expand and create more broadcast and matchday opportunities, these can further increase the earning potential for clubs.”

Thanks to their commercial revenue streams, Liverpool (€715 million), Tottenham Hotspur (€615 million) and Chelsea (€546 million) still managed to stay in the top ten despite reduced broadcast income after missing out on the Champions League.

Barcelona also saw a €63 million fall in matchday revenue after they were forced to play at the smaller Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys while the Camp Nou was being redeveloped.

But the Spanish club remain top of the list of women’s sides for a third straight year with €17.9 million in revenue, a 26 per cent increase from the 2022-23 season.

Arsenal Women (€17.9 million) are second, followed by Chelsea (€13.4 million), Manchester United (€10.7 million) and Real Madrid (€10.5 million).