The last decade has cemented Manchester City as one of the most dominant forces in football. For a long time, the jewel in the Manchester crown was held by Manchester United till the force called Manchester City started to flourish under the umbrella of Abu Dhabi United Group for Development and Investment, owned by Sheikh Mansour, member of the royal family. City Football Group was created to become the owning vehicle of Manchester City and subsequently become the pioneers of the multi-club ownership (MCO) model by controlling 12 football clubs across the world
Since the takeover in 2008, Manchester City has been one of the most profoundly successful football clubs on-field in recent times with 8 Premier League titles, one Champions league trophy, three times FA Cup winners, six times Football League Cup winners, four times Community Shield winners, one time winners of UEFA Super Cup and FIFA Club World Cup each
Off-field successes can be primarily clubbed in three buckets
- Overall revenue growth
- Growth in global fan following, and
- Growth in brand strength
In each of these brackets, Manchester City has delivered results, a topic covered in today’s blog
Revenue Growth
Manchester City’s 23/24 financial, recently released, posts a total revenue of £715mn (€858mn £1=€1.2), a marginal increase from the 22/23 revenue of £712.8mn. City’s revenues have always recorded a growth in the last decade barring 19/20 when the pandemic struck and everyone suffered, taking the decadal growth to a 6% CAGR. City also topped the revenue list in the Premier League in 22/23 and by all accounts, it should top in 23/24 too. It’s interesting to note that the total revenues have grown by a whopping 85% in a decade from €463mn in 14/15 to €858mn in 23/24
Amongst the three key revenue streams, City has been thriving on a steadily growing commercial revenue. A comparison between the pre-pandemic period of 18/19 and 23/24 states the growth by stream
- Matchday: 46%
- Broadcast: 23%
- Commercial: 58%
The commercial revenue gets a strong boost from the kit, front-of-shirt (including stadium) and sleeve sponsors, who collectively contribute approximately 43%. Worth noting that the deal with Etihad Airways, who covers front-of-shirt & stadium naming rights, are on the verge of reaching an extension agreement to reportedly more than double the current deal value
Fan Growth
City has been quietly building a steady fan base across the globe, an indicative measure of which can be seen from the growth in their social media following. Between Q4’21 and Q4’24, they have recorded 85% growth in their social media following, one of the highest in the Premier League and also amongst the top 20 revenue generating clubs. What’s interesting is how they have been able to capitalize content to build this
- Over 100% growth in Instagram and YouTube, quite strongly through short and long form videos
- An astonishing 511% follower increase in their TikTok account
- More than impressive 70% growth on following in X or erstwhile Twitter
Quite clearly, prioritizing visual content to build their brand narrative and messages
Growth in Brand Value
Manchester City has certainly built one of the most recognizable football sports brands globally. As of 2024 Brand Finance ranking, Manchester City FC with a brand value of €1.6bn, up 7% over 2023 is the second-most valuable football club brand, having recorded slightly slower growth in its brand value. This is almost largely driven by the historic on-field feats achieved by the club of becoming the first English club to simultaneously hold the Premier League, FA Cup, UEFA Champions League, UEFA Super Cup, and FIFA Club World Cup titles. These accolades have led to substantial increases in commercial and matchday revenue, further bolstering the club’s financial power
Further, it has recorded one of the highest jumps in brand valuation in the last 5 years, an astonishing 43%. According to Brand Finance’s research, the club achieves perfect scores for its impressive balance of on-field performance and off-field effectiveness and marketability, thereby making City as one of the world’s most formidable football brands
In Conclusion
To say the Manchester City has grown to become a lethal and strong football brand in the last decade will be an understatement. Although they are going through a temporary period of crisis, both on-field, with only one win in last 11 games and off-field, with a massive slew of 115+ charges of financial breaches against them, it still does not take away the force that they have built
This period is a test of time and it will only be interesting to see how City grows from this to the next level
