DUSSELDORF, Germany, September 20 /PRNewswire/ --

- BBDO Consulting Publishes Top 25 Ranking of Europe's Most Valuable
Football Associations / Top is Real Madrid, Second and Third are FC Barcelona
and Manchester United / Findings Prove That Professional Brand Management is
an Important Value Factor for Football Clubs.

With a brand value of EUR1,063 million the world's most successful
football club, Real Madrid, is the only association with a brand value which
exceeds 1 billion euros. Second place, with a brand value of 948 millions
euros, is FC Barcelona and third is Manchester United.

The ranking is based on research, conducted by top management consultancy
BBDO Consulting, which determines brand value using current and future income
flow and expert opinion. The ranking is a guide for companies interested
conducting football-related advertising that helps them evaluate the
mid/long-term marketing potential of a club.

Investigations into the brand value of football clubs already exists but,
until now, the evaluation has been based on either solely quantitative or
solely qualitative factors. The brand evaluation model developed by BBDO
Consulting (the Brand Equity Evaluation for Accounting method) combines both
factors.

This approach goes far beyond depicting only financial performance - it
analyses scientific behavioural values such as brand popularity, brand image,
brand sympathy and loyalty as well as fiscal data. Income was examined in
great depth, right up to the levels of sponsor contracts, merchandising, and
revenue from season tickets etc. The behavioural scientific side of the BEVA
model stems from a survey of around 400 international experts.

Top 25 ranking of Europe's most valuable football clubs

Position  Football club      Brand value in millions
                                                   (EUR)
 
    1         Real Madrid CF                       1,063
    2         FC Barcelona                           948
    3         Manchester United                      922
    4         FC Chelsea                             828
    5         AC Milan                               824
    6         FC Bayern MÃŒnchen                      727
    7         Inter Milan                            715
    8         FC Arsenal London                      712
    9         Juventus Turin                         709
    10        FC Liverpool                           645
    11        Olympique Lyon                         453
    12        AS Rome                                441
    13        FC Schalke 04                          436
    14        Ajax Amsterdam                         368
    15        Glasgow Rangers                        332
    16        FC Valencia                            319
    17        Benfica Lissabon                       318
    18        Celtic Glasgow                         315
    19        VfB Stuttgart                          288
    20        Werder Bremen                          275
    21        FC Porto                               255
    22        PSV Eindhoven                          242
    23        FC Sevilla                             235
    24        Villarreal CF                          234
    25        OSC Lille                              206