Analysis: Masters of commercial revenue growth don’t need great sporting progress

There is a perception in football that you can’t really grow your commercial revenues unless you see some proper progress on the pitch. However, this analysis proves you can easily multiply revenue without silverware or promotions.

In this analysis, we look at the masters of commercial growth both in the top five leagues – and in the best of the rest. European qualification certainly gives a boost to clubs’ commercial revenues.

Why it matters: Fewer and fewer old-fashioned billionaire club-owners dominate European football, while professional owners are growing in numbers. They are highly focused on commercial growth, and some have already proven themselves.

The perspective: The smaller leagues can’t keep pace with the growth rates achieved by some of the best in the big five leagues. There is also a rather remarkable negative trend among the biggest clubs globally.