The Most Valuable NFL Teams

The recession has not spared anyone and that includes the National Football League. According to Forbes, it is the first downturn of NFL since they started tracking the enterprise value of each team in NFL in 1998. There has been a decline of 2% or an average of $1.02 billion last season where almost 21 of the 32 teams saw their enterprise values decrease. Forbes clarified that their appraisal of the worth of the team are enterprise values which is an economic measure that reflects the market value of the team. In this case it also includes the revenue from the stadium but not the real estate value. The decline of the team value lies mostly on the fact that there are fewer people with the ability to buy a team because of the economy and there was a decrease in the non-broadcasting revenue for many teams.

Still, there are those teams which increased value despite the recession such as Dallas Cowboys which has a 9% increase in value. Only the soccer club Manchester United tops them with $1.84 billion. Dallas Cowboys recently moved to their $1.25 billion stadium and proved their worth when they sold out every game for the regular season even at the highest average ticket price of $160. The stadium is also used for various events such as boxing, the latest being the fight between Pacquiao/Clottey and concerts and thus increased its net income, aside from what it makes on the Dallas Cowboys, which is what owner Jerry Jones aim to do. But the team hit a record when their overall operating income hit sky high with $ 143 million.

Anyway, here is the latest ranking of the 10 most valuable NFL teams:

No. 1: Dallas Cowboys
Sport: football
Value: $1.8 billion
Owner: Jerral Jones
Revenue**: $420 million
Operating Income*: $143.3 million
Valuation Breakdown:
Sport $678 mil
Market $501 mil
Stadium $439 mil
Brand Management $188 mil
New stadium landed NCAA Men's Final Four, NBA All-Star Game and Super Bowl.

No. 2: Washington Redskins
Sport: football
Value: $1.6 billion
Owner: Daniel Snyder
Revenue**: $353 million
Operating Income*: $103.7 million
Valuation Breakdown:
Sport $692 mil
Market $379 mil
Stadium $348 mil
Brand Management $131 mil
Another team owner who made great risks and greatly increased the team’s operating income is Washington Redskin owner Dan Snyder and it’s no wonder they came next to the Cowboys. Average operating income of $103.7 million over past five seasons is the highest in the NFL.


No. 3: New England Patriots
Sport: football
Value: $1.36 billion
Owner: Robert Kraft
Revenue**: $318 million
Operating Income*: $66.5 million
Valuation Breakdown:
Sport $678 mil
Market $295 mil
Stadium $255 mil
Brand Management $140 mil
Aside from Tom Brady, the fans love the changes that have been done to its stadium such as the 41.5 feet high and 164 feet wide video boards to enhance overall fan experience plus the Patriot Place adjacent to Gillette Stadium which features shopping, dining and entertainment. No wonder demands for tickets remain high despite having the second highest ticket price, next only to the Cowboys.


No. 4: New York Giants
Sport: football
Value: $1.18 billion
Owner: John Mara, Steven Tisch
Revenue**: $241 million
Operating Income*: $2.1 million
Valuation Breakdown:
Sport $777 mil
Market $210 mil
Stadium $116 mil
Brand Management $79 mil
Sold naming rights to practice facility for more than $35 million over 15 years and is close to selling out season tickets for new stadium.


No. 5: Houston Texans
Sport: football
Value: $1.17 billion
Owner: Robert McNair
Revenue**: $272 million
Operating Income*: $36.5 million
Valuation Breakdown:
Sport $678 mil
Market $209 mil
Stadium $193 mil
Brand Management $92 mil
Sold out at every game plus the stadium naming rights deal with Reliant is the richest in the NFL, worth $300 million.


No. 6: New York Jets
Sport: football
Value: $1.14 billion
Owner: Robert Wood Johnson IV
Revenue**: $238 million
Operating Income*: $7.6 million
Valuation Breakdown:
Sport $766 mil
Market $197 mil
Stadium $110 mil
Brand Management $70 mil
Having difficulty selling personal seat licenses for season tickets at new stadium.


No. 7: Philadelphia Eagles
Sport: football
Value: $1.11 billion
Owner: Jeffrey Lurie
Revenue**: $260 million
Operating Income*: $34.7 million
Valuation Breakdown:
Sport $678 mil
Market $190 mil
Stadium $169 mil
Brand Management $81 mil
The Eagle fans have very loyal fans as seen on season ticket renewal rate which has been running over 99%, one of the highest in the NFL.


No. 8: Baltimore Ravens
Sport: football
Value: $1.07 billion
Owner: Stephen Bisciotti
Revenue**: $255 million
Operating Income*: $44.9 million
Valuation Breakdown:
Sport $662 mil
Market $191 mil
Stadium $154 mil
Brand Management $66 mil
Team has never been able to build up any fan base outside its market, despite capturing 2001 Super Bowl but just like the Eagles fans, the Ravens fans are also loyal so much so that the team has sold out every game since moving to Baltimore and even tickets for the entire 2010 season are already sold-out.


No. 9: Chicago Bears
Sport: football
Value: $1.1 billion
Owner: McCaskey family
Revenue**: $254 million
Operating Income*: $37.3 million
Valuation Breakdown:
Sport $662 mil
Market $208 mil
Stadium $132 mil
Brand Management $65 mil
Successfully markets season tickets via e-mails with video and personal delivery. The team tickets price were increased for almost 75% of their seats for the 2010 season.


No. 10: Denver Broncos
Sport: football
Value: $1.04 billion
Owner: Patrick Bowlen
Revenue**: $250 million
Operating Income*: $22.0 million
Valuation Breakdown:
Sport $662 mil
Market $182 mil
Stadium $142 mil
Brand Management $64 mil
Popularity has fallen from fourth to 12th among NFL fans since John Elway retired following 1998 season. And rumors regarding the sale of the team have been rampant. Fans are loyal as seen on sold out general seating but had a hard time with luxury suite and club seat.


*Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization.
** Net of stadium revenues used for debt payments

Source: Forbes.com