Barcelona have really hit the big time: their new shirt deal with E-commerce company Rakuten is reported to be worth €55 million.
This coup - which will come into effect when the Catalans’ deal with Qatar Airways, worth €34m - sees the Cules land in second place of the rankings, still nowhere near the €70m earned by Manchester United from sponsor Chevrolet.
Chelsea are in third place with Yokohama Tyres, who pay them €47m a year.
This has really shown to what extent Italian teams have been dwarfed on the international stage: even a giant like Juventus doesn’t earn more than €17m from Jeep. Milan are on €14m, Inter on €12m… and yet none of the former leads the rankings in Italy.
That’s right, Mapei, Sassuolo’s sponsor, pumps €18m into the Neroverdi’s coffers, though that may have something to do with the fact that it’s chairman Giorgio Squinzi’s company.
Meanwhile, going back to Europe, Bayern are in fourth place (€35m from Deutsche Telekom), Arsenal are fifth (€35m, Emirates), followed by Liverpool (€34m) and Real Madrid (€30m).
