The top 20 richest football clubs in the world

There are not any real surprises in our list of the top 20 richest football clubs in the world in April 2026. But the order itself can easily change via a range of circumstances – for better or worse, as fans of big teams such as Paris Saint-Germain, Barcelona and Manchester City know very well.

Football is big business, and the sport has become a money-generating machine for the richest football clubs over the past 20 years. TV deals, rapidly rising transfer fees, and other lucrative revenue streams have combined to create mountains of cash.

At the pinnacle of the game, the biggest clubs produce ever-heftier wedges of cash each year, and football’s financial might shows no sign of decreasing anytime soon. Every year, financial industry leaders Deloitte publish their Football Money League detailing the richest clubs in the world, and we have taken a closer look at their rundown for 2026 below.

The top 20 richest football clubs in the world in April 2026

20. West Ham United – £231.8m

West Ham Unitedhave dropped three places since the last update, but still make their way into the top 20. Being a Premier League club based in London, they can charge match-going fans more for their tickets and raise prices for other sellable assets in the stadium.

However, unlike some of the last few seasons, West Ham failed to qualify for any European competition this campaign. They also spent heavily on new recruits last summer, and also in January.

The Hammers were struggling in the Premier League under new manager Julen Lopetegui, and decided to replace him with a familiar name in the English top flight in Graham Potter. However, the former Brighton and Chelsea head coach failed to impress, and was replaced by Nuno Espirito Santo.

One of their star players Mohammed Kudus was also sold to London-based Premier League rivals Tottenham, which has not helped Nuno's cause in terms of his team trying to improve in the 2025/26 campaign, as they are in a relegation battle. They have brought in the likes of striker Taty Castellanos from Lazio and a Nuno favourite in Adama Traore on loan from Fulham to try and help them escape the dreaded drop zone.

19. Benfica – £238.1m

Next to enter the list is the only Portuguese club in Benfica. They are still very well-supported, despite falling off in Europe in recent years.

Benfica will always gain revenue from their domestic performances though, as they are one of the strongest teams in their league. They are usually fighting for the title alongside the likes of Porto and Sporting.

18. Stuttgart – £248.9m

Another new entry into the list since the last update is Stuttgart. They are one of only three German representatives.

However, they have done well to make the list over the likes of 2023/24 Bundesliga champions Bayer Leverkusen, and heavily backed RB Leipzig. Nonetheless, Stuttgart's revenue will continue to tick so long as they do well domestically, as well as play European football.

17. Newcastle United – £334.7m

Since Newcastle United were taken over by mega-rich Saudi owners, their revenue streams have shot up. They have a number of sponsorships in Saudi Arabia now, plus their 2023/24 and 2025/26 Champions League qualifications would have also contributed to extra funding.

However, due to the Premier League's strict Profit and Sustainability Rules (PSR), which means that they have had to be careful with spending, the Magpies have dropped down two places since the last update. They are also outsiders to qualify for the Champions League for next season, which would hurt their finances further, as they are struggling in the Premier League and got knocked out of the Champions League 8-3 on aggregate by Barcelona in the last 16.

16. Juventus – £337.4m

Juventus have stayed in 16th place since the last update. The Old Lady won nine Serie A titles in a row between 2011 and 2020 but have not lifted the Scudetto since.

Juve are another team who were competing in the Champions League last campaign, which they would have hoped to maximise revenue from, but they got knocked out 4-3 on aggregate in the play-off round to Dutch side PSV. Alongside that is their bread and butter of the league, which they finished in fourth place and saw them qualify for the Champions League again for this season.

Juventus also competed in the FIFA Club World Cup (CWC) this summer, which yielded them further riches. They also made a number of smart additions in the summer transfer window, including Canada international striker Jonathan David on a free transfer after he left Ligue 1 side Lille, and he scored on his debut in the Old Lady's 2-0 win at home to Parma on the opening weekend of the 2025/26 Serie A season, though has struggled to score on a regular basis since.

15. AC Milan – £344.7m

AC Milan are one of the most decorated and well-supported teams in world football, with only Real Madrid winning more Champions League titles than them. Based in the large and popular Italian city of Milan, there are plenty of opportunities for the Rossoneri to generate income.

Like their city rivals Inter, the Rossoneri were also competing in last season's Champions League, which has helped generate a little extra revenue for the club with a rich history in the competition. However, they were knocked out in the play-off round 2-1 on aggregate to Dutch team Feyenoord, and so will take no part in this season's competition.

Milan also finished eighth in Serie A, and so are not playing in Europe at all, which has significantly impact their revenue figures as they have dropped to 15th place in this report. They signed prolific Mexico international striker Santiago Gimenez from Eredivisie side Feyenoord in order to help try and bridge that gap, and represented a significant financial outlay.

The likes of Joao Felix and Kyle Walker from the Premier League were also brought to the San Siro on loan in the 2024/25 January transfer window, but have since returned to their parent clubs. Sales of Theo Hernandez and Tijjani Reijnders to both Al Hilal and Manchester City respectively have yielded significant profits for Milan, but are difficult players to replace.

14. Aston Villa – £378.2m

Aston Villa have risen to 14th place since the last update. Their revenue streams have been significantly boosted after qualifying for the Champions League for the 2024/25 campaign, and they also reached the quarter-final stage of the competition having beaten Belgium Pro League side Club Brugge in their last-16 tie.

Villa are one of a few teams in England's top flight that pushed for a top-five spot, which would have guaranteed Champions League qualification for next season's competition, as England were given an extra place for next term given their superior coefficient ranking over other nations. However, Unai Emery's side only managed to finish in sixth, yielding a Europa League place for this season instead.

The big-money sale of Colombia international striker Jhon Duran to Saudi Pro League side Al Nassr in the last January transfer window will also give the Villans a significant financial boost. Forward Evann Guessand was brought in from Ligue 1 side Nice in the summer transfer window as his replacement, but he has since been shipped on loan to Crystal Palace in the January transfer window.

In truth, they were unable to spend too much money due to their restrictions with PSR. However, a few of their signings have also not worked out so far.

13. Atletico Madrid – £381.8m

Being based in the Spanish capital of Madrid, Atletico have been able to take advantage of plenty of revenue opportunities, especially given their rivalry with perhaps the biggest club in the world in Real Madrid. They have also had notable success on the pitch, winning LaLiga in 2013/14 and 2020/21 when it is so often dominated by Real and Barcelona.

Atletico were one of the biggest spenders in the 2024 summer transfer window, bringing in the likes of Argentina international striker Julian Alvarez from Manchester City and English central midfielder Conor Gallagher from Chelsea. They will be hoping that the heavy expenditure will turn into success in the future, as they finished third in LaLiga.

Diego Simeone's side were also competing in the CWC, but were knocked out at the group stage. They will be hoping to perform better in a number of other competitions this season, including the likes of the Champions League.

12. Borussia Dortmund – £446.3m

Borussia Dortmund have come so close to winning major silverware in recent years, notably losing out on the 2022/23 Bundesliga title to Bayern Munich on the final day, as well as losing the 2024 Champions League final 2-0 to Real Madrid at Wembley Stadium. They still manage to generate a lot of revenue from their large Yellow Wall support though, and have sold big in recent years with superstars like Erling Haaland and Jude Bellingham leaving for greener pastures.

Dortmund also competed in last season's Champions League, but after a strong league phase stage, they were knocked out in the quarter-finals by Barcelona 5-3 on aggregate. Poor early league form saw Nuri Sahin relieved of his duties as head coach – an expensive termination offset by the significant sale of Dutch forward Donyell Malen to Aston Villa in the January transfer window, which would have helped balance the books a little.

Dortmund were one of a number of sides on this list that were also competing in the CWC, while they also invested in former star player Jude Bellingham's younger brother Jobe from Premier League side Sunderland in the summer transfer window, hoping that the central midfielder can have a similar impact on the pitch. However, it is always difficult for any team, let alone the Yellow Submarine, to win any silverware over German giants Bayern Munich domestically.

11. Inter Milan – £451.5m

Inter Milan won the Scudetto in the 2023/24 season, which would have helped boost their revenues, and so we could see them overtake bitter local AC Milan in terms of riches in the next update. Inter also reached the Champions League final last campaign, their second in three years, but lost again this time 5-0 to PSG.

They also finished as runners-up in Serie A to Napoli, led by their former manager Antonio Conte. Inter also competed in this summer's CWC, which has given them further riches, and are fighting in all of the major competitions again.

10. Chelsea – £490.6m

An American investment consortium got their claws into Chelsea and immediately pumped eye-watering sums into the team, spending around £2bn in a transfer splurge. The Blues’ most recent accounts had a healthy look, but it will be interesting to see how they perform next time.

Chelsea did splash the cash again this summer, and were one of the biggest spenders in Europe's top five leagues. They did win the Europa Conference League as well, beating LaLiga side Real Betis 4-1 in the final, which should generate extra revenue streams.

The Blues are also back in the Champions League this season, having finished in fourth place in the Premier League table. They also significantly won the CWC after beating tournament favourites PSG 3-0 in the final, which has bagged them as much as £100m which has been able to pay for summer transfers like Joao Pedro and Jamie Gittens from Brighton and Dortmund respectively.

However, Chelsea are not guaranteed to finish in the Champions League places this season with a battle forming among a number of other clubs in the Premier League. Head coach Enzo Maresca also lost his job midway through the season, and he was replaced by now former Strasbourg manager Liam Rosenior, with the Ligue 1 side also part of the BlueCo group.

9. Tottenham – £565.0m

Though they have an enormous stadium debt to pay off, Spurs have been raking in the cash since moving into their state-of-the-art new home. New sponsorship deals are also a contributing factor, and Tottenham’s income has taken another considerable jump over the past couple of years.

Like many others in this list, Spurs invested heavily in the 2024 summer transfer window, spending a club-record £65m to sign striker Dominic Solanke from fellow Premier League side Bournemouth, who earned an England call-up under then interim Three Lions boss Lee Carsley. The North London outfit also generated revenue from winning the Europa League last season which gained them a place in the Champions League, while they will also hope to improve on their performance in the Premier League as they finished in 17th spot.

Spurs also invested significantly in their squad in this summer transfer window, signing West Ham star Mohammed Kudus for a reported £55m among others. However, that has seemingly not helped them in terms of turning their fortunes around, as new head coach Thomas Frank has already been relieved of his duties and replaced with interim boss Igor Tudor, with the North London club in real danger of potential relegation from the Premier League down to the Championship.

8. Manchester United – £666.2m

When Sir Alex Ferguson left the club in 2013, Manchester United were considered the richest and biggest club in world football. However, 13 years later, several factors have contributed to them sliding down the money league, but the number one reason has been the mismanagement of their owners, the Glazer Family.

While the American owners had already plunged the club into hundreds of millions of pounds worth of debt while Ferguson was at the helm, the level of debt has spiralled since the Scot's departure as performances on the pitch have nosedived.

While INEOS are trying to turn the club's fortunes around, there is an acceptance that it will take time. If things do improve on the pitch, then the club still have enough global popularity to rise back up this list, but for now, they will be looking over their shoulders rather than looking upwards.

The sacking of head coach Ruben Amorim midway through the season will also cost them financially, and they have also been knocked out of both domestic cup competitions. This means that United will only play a total of 40 games this term, which means fewer gate receipts among other financial blows.

7. Arsenal – £690.2m

Arsenal are one of six Premier League representatives in the top 10 and the Gunners’ recent Champions League involvement could allow them to climb the rankings even further. Matchday revenues from the 60,000-capacity Emirates Stadium in London are among the league’s loftiest.

At the same time, owners Stan and Josh Kroenke have not been shy about investing in Arsenal since Mikel Arteta’s appointment in December 2019. For all their might, one issue the club is eager to address is the lack of a Champions League trophy in the cabinet.

But should the Gunners ever win it for the first time in their illustrious history, a swarm of new revenue opportunities would be expected to come their way. They finished in second place in the Premier League for a third season in a row.

Nonetheless, the Champions League presented their only realistic chance of winning silverware in the 2024/25 campaign, but they lost a tough two-legged affair 3-1 on aggregate against PSG at the semi-final stage of the competition. To try and stop their trophy drought, the Gunners invested heavily in the summer transfer window, bringing in the likes of Martin Zubimendi from Real Sociedad, Viktor Gyokeres from Sporting and Eberechi Eze from Crystal Palace for relatively chunky fees, and are hoping to win their first Premier League title in 22 years.

6. Manchester City – £696.6m

Manchester City reported record revenues last year, placing them second on Deloitte’s list ahead of their illustrious rivals, but have since slipped to sixth. Also, the Premier League is investigating the Citizens for 115 alleged financial irregularities, many of which are related to artificial inflation of revenue and sponsorship streams.

Nevertheless, City’s success on the pitch continues to create new wealth off it, regardless of what happens in their upcoming hearing. Indeed, the City Football Group injected £210m into the club in the final week of August 2024, to give City an optimal chance of ensuring that they avoided financial rule breaches in 2024/25.

However, Pep Guardiola's side finished in third place in the Premier League, and do not quite look like the powerhouse that they used to be. As such, they spent big in the January transfer window in order to help refresh the squad, with around £180m of new talent set to come through the doors at the Etihad Stadium.

That significant financial outlay not only made them the biggest spenders in world football in January, but they also spent more than the other 19 clubs did in the Premier League combined (£177m)! On top of a relatively poor league finish by their usual sky-high standards, City's revenue figures have taken a hit.

They also did plenty of business in this summer's transfer window already ahead of playing in the CWC, with the likes of Reijnders, Rayan Ait-Nouri, Rayan Cherki and James Trafford all signed for fairly significant outlays. The beefing up of the squad has certainly got City back to at least near their best, especially after their recent purchase of Ghana international winger Antoine Semenyo from fellow Premier League side Bournemouth for a reported £65m, as well as Crystal Palace captain and England international central defender Marc Guehi for a cut-price £20m.

5. Liverpool – £702.3m

With their Anfield expansions, Premier League performances and Champions League success all driving numbers up, Liverpool’s finances are healthy. They did miss out on Champions League qualification for 2023/24, however, so their income dipped.

Nonetheless, they qualified for the competition in the 2024/25 campaign, and more importantly won the Premier League title in an incredible debut season for new head coach Arne Slot. The Reds also reached the Carabao Cup final, but lost 2-1 to fellow Premier League rivals Newcastle at Wembley Stadium.

They were also knocked out of the Champions League after eventual winners PSG beat them in a penalty shootout in their last-16 clash, while the tie was finely poised at 1-1 on aggregate. Liverpool invested heavily in the summer transfer window, with their standout signings being Germany international midfielder Florian Wirtz from Bayer Leverkusen for what was a reported British-record fee of £115m, before Sweden international striker Alexander Isak also came through the doors from Newcastle for a reported £125m.

Their total spending reached around £450m, the most that any Premier League club has invested in a summer transfer window! However, Liverpool have looked a shadow of themselves, with a lot of the new signings not making a major impact, and they could even miss out on Champions League football altogether because of it.

4. Paris Saint-Germain – £703.1m

Funded by swathes of Qatari cash, Paris Saint-Germain wield as much clout as any other club in the transfer market. Many of their sponsorship contracts, especially those of Qatari origin, help to fill their coffers annually, and the Parisians’ yearly runs to the Champions League knockout stages also help to increase the cash flowing in.

Marketable players like Kylian Mbappe, Neymar, and Lionel Messi have also contributed to earning PSG the big bucks. However, they have all now left the club, and so less-marketable names have needed to step up.

To be fair to them, they did just that, as PSG won the Ligue 1 title. However, their main cash flow will largely come from their performances in the Champions League, in which they won for the first time in their history, completing an unprecedented treble after also winning the Coupe de France.

The arrival of Georgia international superstar Khvicha Kvaratskhelia in the last January transfer window also gave them a boost, although he did arrive in Paris for a large sum of money. PSG just missed out on what would have been yet another piece of silverware to their trophy collection in the CWC, after losing 3-0 to Chelsea in the final.

3. Bayern Munich – £722.9m

Bayern Munich is Germany’s most popular team by far. Despite losing out to Bayer Leverkusen in 2023/24, their tight stronghold over the domestic game there has allowed them to build a rock-solid financial platform.

The Bavarians are routinely among the Champions League’s most competitive outfits, too, while the sponsorship deals they attract are among the sweetest in football. They were no doubt eager to improve on their trophyless campaign in 2023/24, as winning trophies reap financial benefits.

Bayern did just that, claiming the Bundesliga title. In their opening CWC match, the Bavarians made a statement by beating New Zealand based Auckland City 10-0, but ultimately crashed out at the knockout stage.

Bayern's biggest investment in the summer transfer window was the signing of now former Liverpool and Colombia international winger Luis Diaz for a reported transfer fee of around £65.5m. He has certainly made them a stronger outfit, as Vincent Kompany's side are set to compete on all fronts this season.

2. Barcelona – £818.8m

LaLiga heavyweights Barcelona have had some well-documented financial crises, with Los Cules activating their infamous “levers” to keep themselves in the black. However, the Catalonian giants remain one of the game’s biggest hitters in terms of revenue due to their consistent appearances in the Champions League and the sky-high matchday funds they accrue at the 90,000-seater Camp Nou.

More Champions League revenue should be generated this season, while they have also snatched the LaLiga title back away from bitter rivals Real Madrid. Transfer business was fairly quiet in the summer window although Barca did sign Spanish goalkeeper Joan Garcia from bitter rivals Espanyol and Marcus Rashford on loan from Manchester United as a couple of the more notable additions.

1. Real Madrid – £975.2m

The world’s biggest club, Real Madrid have been listed among the globe’s richest outfits for an age, and Los Blancos can draw from one of football’s deepest funds whenever a new superstar catches their eye. A series of Champions League triumphs over the past decade have added more zeros to their account balance, with Real earning a lot from LaLiga TV and prize money on top.

Indeed, Los Blancos' illustrious financial history gained an extra degree of dominance over the rest in July 2024, when they became the world's first football club to rake in more than one billion euros in revenue (£840m). That figure does not even include player transfers either, and it represents a rise of approximately 27% on the previous year's total revenue.

Overall, Real made 16m euros (approximately £13.5m) in profit during the 2023/24 financial year. However, they finished in second place in the LaLiga table, and were knocked out of the Champions League by Arsenal 5-1 on aggregate at the quarter-final stage.

Real were also competing in this summer's CWC, but were disappointedly knocked out in the semi-finals after being thrashed 4-0 by PSG. Former Liverpool right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold was one of the star names that Los Blancos added to their squad in the summer transfer window, alongside the likes of Dean Huijsen from Bournemouth.

What is the Deloitte Money Football League?

The Deloitte Money Football League is a yearly profile of the highest-revenue clubs in world football. It claims to be the industry’s most reliable independent analysis of the top-earning clubs, and several of the biggest media companies use it as a reference point for their own analysis of financial figures.

Deloitte itself is the biggest professional services network in terms of revenue and number of employees in the world. It is considered to be one of the “Big Four” accounting firms. They have released 29 Deloitte Money Football League profiles in total now, with the latest edition coming in January 2026.

They calculate the clubs' “riches” by revenue generated in the previous footballing season, so for example, the 2026 profile focuses on the revenues generated from the 2024/25 campaign. Revenue can be generated in various ways, from tickets and products sold on matchdays to commercial and broadcast revenue, and all of the figures are calculated to form a total revenue for each club.