The dynamics of “the beautiful game” of football (“soccer” if you are American) has changed significantly over the years and due to its popularity commercialisation has been introduced and football has become part of the business world. Now clubs are being analyzed just like any other major business.

Below is a list drawn up by Forbes of the most valuable football brands in the world as of May 2014, in other words, the clubs who have been the most successful at riding the wave of commercialisation.

1.       REAL MADRID

According to Forbes, Real Madrid are the most valuable club in the world having made it to the semifinals of the Champions League for four consecutive years and won the cup recently for the 10^th time, beating Atletico Madrid 4-1 after extra time. The club is valued at £2,040 M.

2.       BARCELONA

Barcelona has not had a successful season, ending a first season in six years without a major trophy. Despite the poor run they still remain in position two as the most valuable football club in the world valued at £1,898 

3.       MANCHESTER UNITED

The 2013/14 season has been bad for Manchester United under the former manager, David Moyes. The just-ended season was marked by poor performances, having lost 11 premier league games to finish 7^thand ending the season with only the lowly FA Community Shield Trophy in their cabinet. The club who recently appointed Dutch Manager Louis Van Gaal to try and restore them to their dominant position is still a big brand despite a low season and are valued at £1,666 M.

4.       BAYERN MUNICH

Bayern Munich are among the top football brands in the world due to their success in the Bundesliga and also their treble winning season of 2012/13.  The biggest club in Germany won their domestic Bundesliga title with a record total of 90 points and have been dominating the German league for a number of years. They are valued at £1,097 M.

5.         ARSENAL

After almost eight years, Arsenal finally managed to win a major trophy when they beat Hull City to clench the FA Cup title which is the last trophy they won back in 2005. They have done well in the top four by qualifying for the Champions League 16 times consecutively. With also a huge worldwide fan base, this has helped them maintain top 10 position in the top football brands league. They are valued at £789 M.

6.         CHELSEA

Since its takeover by Russian billionaire Roman Abramovich, the club has risen from a middle table club to joining the big clubs league. Through the years they have won 4 Premier League titles and one Champions League title among other achievements. The achievements reflect in the rise of the value of the club with a revenue of $394 M. They are valued at £514 M.

7. MANCHESTER CITY

The club shares a very similar success story as Chelsea. The club was purchased in 2008 by Abu Dhabi United Group and became one of the wealthiest in the world. In 2011, Manchester City qualified for the UEFA Champions League and won the FA Cup. The following year, they won the Premier League, their first league title for 44 years, spending just shy of £1bn ($1.5 billion) in four years to achieve their goal. In 2014, they won the League Cup and a second Premier League title. Due to their success they are now sitting in position 7 of the most valuable football clubs in the world valued at £511M

8.         AC MILAN

The Italian giants have been in the top 10 for many years majorly due to their rich history. They are the second most successful club in world football in terms of international trophies. Though they have slightly declined in the European rankings and also in the Serie A (their local league), their history still holds them up there with the elite clubs. They are currently valued at £508 M.

9.           JUVENTUS

Just like AC Milan Juventus are Italian giants who have dominated in Italy for many years and they also won the Serie A title in 2014 smashing the Italian League record by becoming the first Italian club to reach the 100 points mark in a season. With also a huge fan base from the Italians and lovers of Italian football, the club sits at position 9 of the most valuable football club in the world with a value of £504 M.

10.        LIVERPOOL

The 2013/14 campaign has been a successful one in Liverpool’s perspective having jumped from 7th the previous season to position 2 thus qualifying for the Champions League which they have waited for since 2008/09. The club though has always had a huge fan base both in England and globally with a rich history backing it. They are the most successful English club in the Champions League having won 5 of them. This has kept them just in the top 10 position taking the 10th position with a value of £409 M.

COMMERCIALISATION

Some though fear that football has moved too far from its roots and risks alienating the very supporters upon which its success has been built. This hasn’t stopped the advancement of football in the commercial world and it doesn’t look like it will ever change.

SOCIAL MEDIA RANKINGS

The Kenya Forum did some research and came up with the list below of how football clubs rank on the social media which if anything to go by may reflect the size of fan base each club enjoys globally.

Facebook

• Barcelona 65.4M
• Real Madrid 62.4M
• Manchester United 49.3M
• Chelsea 30.4M
• Arsenal 24.8M
• AC Milan 21.5M
• Liverpool 20.1M
• Manchester City 12.9M
• Juventus 12.2M

Twitter

• Barcelona 11.7M
• Real Madrid 11.2M
• Arsenal 3.85M
• Chelsea 3.81M
• Liverpool 2.73M
• Manchester United 2.49M
• AC Milan 1.93M
• Manchester City 1.74M
• Juventus 1.14M
• Bayern Munich 1.11M

RICHEST FOOTBALLERS

• Cristiano Ronaldo (£122m)
• Lionel Messi (£120.5m)
• Samuel Eto’o (£70m)
• Wayne Rooney (£69m)
• Kaka (£67.5m)
• The Neymar Family (£66m)
• Ronaldinho (£64m)
• Zlatan Ibrahimovic (£57m)
• Gianluigi Buffon (£52m)
• Thierry Henry (£47m)