Soccer is one of the most lucrative and well-funded sports and entertainment industries in the world. As soccer has grown and got bigger, the funding that goes into it has followed this trajectory. To own a soccer club you need to have a lot of money to not only make the overall purchase of the club but to pump your money to fund the club’s day-to-day finances.
Although soccer is seen as an investment, you could eventually sell the club for profit but you are still funding a lot of it yourself. When I look at some of the owners and how much they spend, it makes me wonder who are the richest club owners and how much they are worth.
Public Investment Fund – Newcastle United
In 2021 the Sovereign Wealth Fund of Saudi Arabia bought 80% of Newcastle and completed the takeover of the club that was blocked by the premier league for 6 months before it was finally done in October of 2021. The public investment fund had major investments from countries around the world such as Russia, Brazil, the United States and others.
According to the Sovereign Wealth Fund Institute, the assets available in the club are more than $430 billion with RB Sports and Media and PCP Capital Partners both owning a 10% stake each with that also being completed in October. With these giants at the helm of the club and solid investment already, it is safe to say that within the next few years, Newcastle will be at the top of Champions League winner odds for years to come and probably winning a lot of trophies in the process. One of the main Saudi Arabian investors is said to have a net worth of $17.6 billion and this is only a small portion of this massive investment.
Sheik Mansour – Manchester City
In 2008 Sheik Mansour bought Manchester City and this started one of the most dominant football teams in football history. As well as buying Manchester City, he has since bought ownership in a lot of teams around the world, including Melbourne City who are now one of the best teams in Australia. All of these clubs combined to create the City group which are all run and invested in by Sheik and his team. Sheik Mansour has a Net worth of $20 billion which is a whopping amount of money, and if he does ever sell Manchester City or the city group, his net worth will grow tenfold. With football stars like Kevin De Bruyne, John Stones and Erling Haaland, Manchester City has been his most successful investment and the one he focuses on.
Dietrich Mateschitz – Red Bull teams
This Austrian billionaire started to put together a lucrative portfolio of teams ranging from sport to sport. In football he owns several teams from a few countries, starting with Austrian club Red Bull Salzburg, German side RB Leipzig and American side New York Red Bulls. His net worth currently sitting at $19.4 billion has grown a lot since he bought the clubs.
Jim Ratcliffe – Manchester United and OGC Nice
With Manchester United being run by a billionaire family you would expect it to be a good partnership, however, soccer fans would know that United are run very well but recently a British billionaire with a net worth of around $20 billion named, Jim Ratcliffe, has recently bought a lot of shares in the club and will be looking to make the club back to being its best like it was in the early 2000s. He already owns OGC Nice in France and we could be seeing a new big club dynasty being made.
Andrea Agnelli and his family – Juventus
The owners of Juventus are the Agnelli family with Andrea leading the line and being the face of the footballing enterprise they run. He is the chairman of the club and the European Club Association and is already known as a great and cut-throat businessman with a net worth of around $14 billion, this family have their hands in many brands but mainly focuses on the car industry with their interests in Ferrari Alfa Romeo, and Ford, among others.
