1 May 2008Man U win the rich league

Football Clubs News | Football Finance News

Manchester United have won their first honour of the season - by being named the most valuable football club in the world.

Research conducted by Forbes put the value of the Red Devils at £905 million, some way ahead of second-placed Real Madrid's £646 million.

Chelsea, United's forthcoming opponents in the Champions League final, could only manage eighth place despite the undoubted wealth of their Russian owner.

Arsene Wenger's relatively prudent spending and the club's switch to the Emirates Stadium helped the north London outfit claim third place with £603 million.

Boardroom disputes couldn't stop Liverpool rising from eleventh place to fourth.

The top ten also includes two clubs each from Spain, Germany and Italy.

English clubs dominate Forbes' 25-team list - which finds room for Tottenham at number 12, Newcastle at 16, and Everton, West Ham, Manchester City and Aston Villa taking up the number 21 to 24 places.

There was no room for Los Angeles Galaxy in the elite line-up, perhaps because David Beckham has just replaced Ronaldinho as the world's highest-paid footballer by earning a cool £25 million per year.

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