German soccer powerhouse Bayern Munich is now the most valuable soccer brand in the world, surpassing Manchester United.
The Manchester United brand is being challenged like never before based on a Breitbart Sports analysis of Brand Finance valuations released Thursday (see AP story) and the last valuations by Forbes. Manchester City has not only beaten MU for city bragging rights, but has passed AC Milan to become one of the 12 most valuable sports brands even before teaming up with the Yankees. And after Bayern Munich came from Germany to win the Champions League last weekend, MU is not even the No. 1 soccer brand on this list of the top 12 overall sports brands:
| Rnk | Franchise in Millions | Forbes | Brand Finance=$ |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New York Yankees* | $340 | $1,156 |
| 2 | Bayern Munich | $179 | $860 |
| 3 | Manchester United | $269 | $837 |
| 4 | Dallas Cowboys* | $193 | $656 |
| 5 | Real Madrid | $264 | $621 |
| 6 | Boston Red Sox* | $173 | $588 |
| 7 | Barcelona | $172 | $572 |
| 8 | New England Patriots* | $146 | $496 |
| 9 | Chelsea | NA | $419 |
| 10 | Arsenal | $158 | $412 |
| 11 | Liverpool | NA | $361 |
| 12 | Manchester City | NA | $332 |
This table is based on the numbers released by London-based consultancy firm Brand Finance, which on average estimates 3.4 times the value that Forbes puts on similar franchise brands. Breitbart has therefore used the 3.4 factor to multiply by the Forbes figures for the Yankees, Cowboys, Red Sox and Patriots, which would indicate the Yankees brand at well over $1 billion.
Converting the Brand Finance figures from euros to dollars, Bayern Munich comes in second at $860 million – just ahead of Manchester United’s $837 million and well ahead of the fourth place Dallas Cowboys (3.4 times $193 million Forbes valuation).
As reported earlier by Breitbart Sports and other sources, the top sports brand on the planet, the New York Yankees, recently teamed up with Manchester City to form a second soccer team in New York. The combination of the biggest sports brand in the world teaming up with a surging city rival presents a challenge for which Manchester United is not accustomed.
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