Do you enjoy watching football? Which football team do you like to support? Well, all the football clubs have a wide fan base throughout the world, as it is the most-watched sport in the world. Football clubs are the growing entertainment industry in the world as they deliver social returns on investment to the average community. Additionally, the rankings of these successful football clubs are based on the net revenue generated by the club, and popularity is based on fan following over social media. So let’s look at the major events and characteristics of the 10 most popular football clubs in the world, and chances are that one could be your favorite.
1. Real Madrid
Instagram Followers: 99.5 million
YouTube Subscribers: 6.52 million
Sale of Jerseys: 1.2 million per year
Annual Profit: $1318.32 million
Famous Players: Cristiano Ronaldo, Raúl González.
Undoubtedly, Real Madrid is the most popular of all football clubs in the world. It enjoys the biggest fan base in football and is one of the most successful clubs in the history of football. It has won the FIFA Club of the 20th Century award with 42.35% votes and became popular on social media platforms as well. Real Madrid is the only Spanish holder of the first division of trophies with 35 titles.
2. Manchester United
Instagram Followers: 41 million
YouTube Subscribers: 4.08 million
Sale of Jerseys: 1.6 million per year
Annual Profit: $683.26 million
Famous Players: Lisandro Martínez, Antony
Manchester United is the first English team to triumph in the European championship in 1968. The club is valued at $4.2 billion although it could not win the league title since 2012/2013 season. It is the first English club to win the Triple in 1999. Moreover, Manchester United has recorded achievements in the champion league, premier league crowns.
3. Barcelona
Instagram Followers: 97.5 million
YouTube Subscribers: 11.8 million
Sale of Jerseys: 12.1 million per year
Annual Profit: $792 million
Famous Players: Lionel Messi, Ronaldinho
Barcelona is the second most popular football club after Real Madrid. It is a Spanish professional football club which includes Neymar, Suaraz, and David Villa as the best forwards. The club has won La Liga Cup, champion league, UEFA super cup, Copa Del Ray and Club World Cup. It has also won 26 Spanish first division trophies and five European cups.
4. Manchester City
Instagram Followers: 24.4 million
YouTube Subscribers: 3.3 million
Sale of Jerseys: 1.5 million per year
Annual Profit: $653.5 million
Famous Players: David Silva, Sergio Agüero
Founded in 1880, Manchester City is the oldest of all football clubs in the world. The City Football Club Limited is the owner of the team, and the Etihad stadium is their home ground. The team continues to find new ways to win games of football. Man City is dominating the world of football while crunching through the champion league as a shape-shifting beast.
5. Liverpool
Instagram Followers: 31.2 million
YouTube Subscribers: 5.81 million
Sale of Jerseys: 2 million per year
Annual Profit: $558.0 million
Famous Players: Mohamed Salah, Darwin Núñez
Liverpool is another outstanding English club in the top 10 list of the most popular football clubs. It has won domestic and major trophies, like UEFA super cup, the UEFA champion league title. In 2009, the club won 1st major FIFA World Cup Title and two European cups in 2005 and 2019. Liverpool is the team with the second most championships (19) in the number. It has won the 19th league title under the leadership of Jurgen Klopp and Rafael Benitez.
6. Bayern Munich
Instagram Followers: 26.8 million
YouTube Subscribers: 2.3 million
Sale of Jerseys: 1 million per year
Annual Profit: $643.9 million
Famous Players: Sadio Mané, Mathys Tel
Bayern Munich conquered all four major championships in 2020. UEFA champion league, UEFA super CUP, and FIFA club world club respectively. Germany’s Bayern Munich football club is the third most valuable club, having earned $4.215 billion last year by overtaking Manchester United. Its winning efforts put the players on the top list of favorite players among football fans. Bayern has won 32 national titles and in terms of revenue, is the largest German football club.
7. Chelsea
Instagram Followers: 27.3 million
YouTube Subscribers: 2.9 million
Sale of Jerseys: 9 million per year
Annual Profit: $493 million
Famous Players: Frank Lampard, Didier Drogba
Six-time English first-division winners, Chelsea has won two European Cups. It is a London based football club valued around $3.2 billion in 2022. This English professional football club is the current winner of the UEFA champion league 2020-21. Moreover, Chelsea is the only team in the history of football clubs who have won all four major European trophies twice.
8. Arsenal
Instagram Followers: 19.4 million
YouTube Subscribers: 2.3 million
Sale of Jerseys: 1.5 million per year
Annual Profit: $154 million
Famous Players: Thierry Henry, Tony Adams
Arsenal has won 13 titles in premier league competition and 14 titles in FA Club. However, the team failed to qualify UEFA champion league last year but is still gearing up a good revenue base due to the majority of market presence. Historically, the team is rich in trophies and accolades but failed to emulate their glories of past recently. The owner of Arsenal football team is Kroenke Sports and Entertainment.
9. Juventus
Instagram Followers: 49.3 million
YouTube Subscribers: 3.44 million
Sale of Jerseys: 4.8 million per year
Annual Profit: $43.2 million
Famous Players: Gianluigi Buffon, Alessandro Del Piero
Four times Italian championship winner, Juventus is a football Club based in Italy. Initially, it was an athletic club, owned by the industrial Agnelli family since 1923. It has won intercontinental champions for two times and its fan base had increased drastically since Cristiano Ronaldo joined Juventus after leaving Real Madrid.
10. Paris-Saint-German
Instagram Followers: 35.8 million
YouTube Subscribers: 3.03 million
Sale of Jerseys: 5 million per year
Annual Profit: $43.2 million
Famous Players: Zlatan Ibrahimović, Pauleta
Popularly known as PSG, Paris-Saint-German is currently the most favored French football club in the world. In 2017, when Neymar Jr. joined the club after leaving Barcelona; it turned out to be an expensive deal worth $222 million. PSG was runner-up of the UEFA Champions League of 2019-20 seasons. The club suffered $224 million loss in 2020 because of the pandemic situation.
Football is becoming more popular and commercially successful every year. All football players develop different skills, for example, public speaking, decision-making, problem solving, etc. Football clubs and players are gaining enormous fan bases over social media platforms. Here you can catch a glimpse of how football clubs harness the collective energy of players, coaches, and administrators. We hope this article has enriched your knowledge about football clubs.
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