As a football fan, do you know the richest
football club owners in the world? Football is an intriguing sport, with many
fans strongly supporting their clubs to be the best and its owner making it on
the list of the richest football club owners in the world.
But wait a sec. Before your following
football argument regarding the richest football club owners, look at this list
of the richest football club owners in the world.
Richest Football Club Owners
1. Public Investment Fund ($430 billion) -
Newcastle
After acquiring over 80 percent stake in
Newcastle in 2021 to complete a takeover blocked six months by the Premier
League, the sovereign wealth fund (Saudi Arabia Public Investment Fund)
currently tops the list of the richest football club owners in the world.
The Public Investment Fund is notable for
its major investments in companies and projects in different parts of the
world, including the United States, France, India, Brazil, Russia, and lots
more.
Saudi Arabia's crown prince, Mohammed bin
Salman, the Head operator of The Public Investment Fund, and its governor,
Yasir Al-Rumayyan, have been appointed Newcastle chairman after acquiring the
club. However, RB Sports & Media and PCP Capital Partners both have a 10
percent stake as part of the takeover deal of Newcastle.
According to a Sovereign Wealth Fund
Institute report, The Public Investment Fund has assets estimated at $430
billion, while Bin Salman has a personal net worth estimated at $17.6 billion.
2. Sheikh Mansour ($20 billion) -
Manchester City, New York City, Yokohama F. Marinos, Club Bolivar
Mansour bin Zayed Al Nahyan, fondly
referred to as Sheikh Mansour, transformed Manchester City into one of the
world's best clubs after buying the club in 2008.
Sheikh Mansour, a well-renowned
billionaire, is the deputy prime minister of the United Arab Emirates, minister
of presidential affairs, and a member of the royalty of Abu Dhabi.
Sheikh Mansour owns several clubs through
the City Football Group, excluding Manchester City, including the United States
MLS New York City FC, Australia's Melbourne City, Japan's Yokohama F. Marinos,
and Bolivia's Club Bolivar.
The management of the City Football Group
is delegated to trusted lieutenant Khaldoon Al Mubarak.
Howbeit, the acquisition of Manchester City
and the recent acquisition of Newcastle United by the Royal Families has
resulted in the accusation of being a blatant attempt at "sports
washing" by the majority of human rights groups.
3. Dietrich Mateschitz ($19.4 billion) -
Red Bull Salzburg, RB Leipzig, NY Red Bulls
Dietrich Mateschitz is an Austrian
billionaire who has acquired several famous football clubs through his Red
Bulls energy drink company.
Dietrich Mateschitz has three clubs in his
portfolio: Germany's Bundesliga RB Leipzig, Austrian club RB Salzburg, and MLS
New York Red Bulls.
With an estimated net worth of $19.4
billion, Dietrich Mateschitz is ranked third on the world's list of the richest
football club owners.
4. Andrea Agnelli & family ($13.5
billion) - Juventus
With an estimated net worth of $13.5 billion,
the Agnelli family, the owners of Juventus, are the fourth wealthiest football
club owners.
Andrea Agnelli, the face of the family's
football enterprise, is the serving chairman of Juventus FC and the European
Club Association (ECA).
The Agnelli family is an industrialist
family with varied business interests. Still, they are primarily synonymous
with the automotive industry, wherein they produce Ferrari, Ferrari, Alfa
Romeo, and other such brands.
5. Dietmar Hopp ($13 billion) - TSG 1899
Hoffenheim
Dietmar Hopp is a renowned businessman in
the software and data processing sector. He is also one of the founders of SAP
SE in 1972, including other former IBM employees Hans Klaus Tschira, Werner
Hector, Claus Wellenreuther, and Hasso Plattner.
Dietmar Hopp reportedly invested over €400
million into TSG 1899 Hoffenheim, a club he played for as a teenager during his
childhood town.
While Hoffenheim may not be a global club,
Hopp's net worth, estimated at $13 billion, makes him one of the richest
football club owners in the world.
6. Philip Anschutz | LA Galaxy | $10bn
Philip Frederick Anschutz is an American
billionaire businessman who is the club owner of MLS LA Galaxy and other
companies in different industries.
Philip Anschutz is a founding member of Major
League Soccer (MLS) and has once owned several other franchises in MLS,
including MetroStars, Chicago Fire, and others in the past.
As a billionaire businessman, Anschutz's
primary business interests are in the real estate, oil, rail, and entertainment
industries.
7. Stan Kroenke ($8.7 billion) - Arsenal
& Colorado Rapids
Stan Kroenke is an American billionaire
entrepreneur who owns the Kroenke Sports Company (KSE). A company that
incorporates several teams from different sports and leagues.
Kroenke Sports Company runs Colorado Rapids
of the MLS, Colorado Avalanche of the National League (NHL), Colorado Mammoth
of the National Lacrosse League (NLL, Lacrosse), Denver Nuggets of the National
Basketball Association (NBA), and St. Louis Club of the National league (NFL,
American Football).
Stan Kroenke, also one of the richest
football club owners in the world, is the main shareholder of Arsenal and is on
the verge of acquiring 100% ownership of the England club.
8. Nasser Al-Khelaifi ($8 billion) - PSG
Nasser Al-Khelaifi is a Qatari billionaire
businessman and the head of Qatar Sports Investments, which owns and manages
Paris Saint-Germain (PSG).
Aside from owning PSG, Al-Khelaifi is the
chairman of the beIN Media Group, which broadcasts various sports.
To date, Al-Khelaifi's world record 222
million (£198m/$263m) signing of Neymar is the highest in football history.
9. Zhang Jindong ($7.6 billion) - Inter
Milan
Zhang Jindong is a Chinese billionaire and
owner of Suning Holdings Group, with which he acquired the majority ownership
stake in Serie A club Inter in 2016
In addition to running Suning Group, a
retail business that deals in domestic appliances, Jindong has other
investments in the media, broadcasting, and sports.
Although Zhang Jindong is the club owner of
Inter Millan, he isn't a member of the board of Inter Milan.
10. Guo Guangchang ($3.8 billion) -
Wolverhampton Wanderers F.C.
Guo Guangchang has been the chairman of
Fosun Group in Zhejiang, China, since 1994, with other branches in Shanghai and
Hong Kong.
Through the Fosun Group, Guo Guangchang
acquired Premier League Club Wolverhampton Wanderers FC from its owner Steve
Morgan in 2016 for £45million.
With an estimated net worth of $3.8
billion, Guo Guangchang sits in 10th place on the list of the richest football
club owners in the world.