July 15, 2015

Eagles, Phillies make Forbes list of most valuable sports teams

By Daniel Craig
PhillyVoice Staff

Forbes released its annual list of the world's 50 most valuable sports teams on Wednesday, and two Philadelphia franchises made the cut once again.

The Eagles were ranked 19th, with an estimated value of $1.75 billion. While that's a nice jump from last year's reported value of $1.314 billion), the Birds actually slid a couple spots -- they were ranked 17th last year -- and again finished last among their division rivals:

The Eagles are financially one of the NFL’s strongest clubs with the seventh highest revenue in the sport, but they are looking up at their NFC East brethren: Cowboys, Redskins and Giants, who all rank among the NFL’s top 4 revenue teams.

The Cowboy's were tied with the Yankees for second on the list, valued at a whopping $3.2 billion and only trailing Spanish soccer juggernaut Real Madrid. Washington and New York are ranked ninth ($2.4 billion) and 12th (2.1 billion), respectively, but no worries Eagles fans. All the money in the world can't stop the Redskins and Giants from being complete dumpster fires this season.

The Phillies, like the Eagles, also slid slightly down the list, ranking 42nd as opposed to 39th last year, despite their their value jumping from $975 million to $1.25 billion. Their 25-year, $5 billion television deal with Comcast SportsNet kicks in next season, so that number could rise even though, as Forbes points out, the team has "turned into losers on the diamond."