Real Madrid tops Forbes list of most valuable football clubs

Real Madrid has topped a list of the world's top 20 most valuable football clubs for a third consecutive year, with five Premier League teams counted in the top 10 of Forbes' annual highest valued football club list.

The Spanish giant is valued at $3.3bn (£2.2bn, €2.9bn) and boasts revenue of $746m, the highest for any sports team globally. Barcelona is in second spot, valued at $3.2bn, while Manchester United is third on $3.1bn.

Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester City and Arsenal make up the English contingent in the top 10, while Newcastle, West Ham and Tottenham all appear in the top 20.

Eight of the top 20 teams are from the Premier League, with rising television and sponsorship revenue giving England's top tier a boost.

The Premier League recently scored a new domestic television deal that will pay clubs an average of $2.7bn annually for three years, beginning with the 2016-17 season.

The new deal is more lucrative than that of any other football league and, when the Premier League's international rights are finalised by the end of 2015, total media rights are expected to surpass $4bn a year.

According to Forbes, the 20 most valuable football teams in the world are worth an average of $1.16bn, 11% more than last year and 84% higher than five years ago.

Forbes takes into account equity and net debt, operating income and transfer net spend when calculating its league table.