MADRID, Jan. 23 (Xinhua) -- Real Madrid has become the first football club to generate over a billion euros (1.04 billion U.S. dollars) in revenue in a single season, according to Deloitte's Money League study published on Thursday.
The study shows Real Madrid generated revenue of about 1.05 billion euros in the 2023-24 season, thanks partly to winning the UEFA Champions League and La Liga.
Madrid's earnings were up 25.8 percent on the previous season's income of 831.4 million euros, with the completion of the reformation of the Santiago Bernabeu Stadium also a big factor as ticket sales almost doubled to about 248 million euros, while commercial earnings increased to about 482 million euros, thanks mainly to a new sponsorship deal with Hewlett Packard.
FC Barcelona was the second-highest earner in Spain, but saw income drop from 800.1 million euros in 2022-23 to 760.3 million euros last season, mainly due to the club playing in the smaller capacity Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium at Montjuic as the Camp Nou undergoes refurbishment.
Atletico Madrid is third in the rankings for Spain (12th overall), with income of 409.5 million euros.
The study shows that although Real Madrid creates more income than anyone else, the Premier League is the dominant competition with nine clubs in the top-20 earners and 14 in the top-30.
Manchester City is the second-highest earner with 837.8 million euros. Despite on-field problems, Manchester United was fourth overall with earnings of 770.6 million euros, with Arsenal seventh on 716.5 million euros and Liverpool a place behind on 714.7 million. ■
