NEWCASTLE United has fallen out the global Top 20 revenue-generating football clubs after being relegated to the Championship in 2009 - although they could make a speedy return following their promotion back to the Premier League.
Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona kept the top spots this year and the Premier League has the highest number of representatives in the table for the 2009/10 season, published by business advisors Deloitte.
Newcastle United saw revenues plummet dramatically after spending a season in the second tier of English football.
In the previous Deloitte table, for the 2008/9 season, Newcastle finished 20th on revenues of £86m (101m euros) with money from the Sky TV deal making up £38m of its income.
Deloitte believes the Magpies will have slipped to somewhere between 40th and 50th in the world rankings.
Championship clubs net around £5m in TV money and Newcastle’s gate receipts would be down on lower crowds, although Deloitte believes Newcastle will return to the Top 20 this season.
Deloitte estimate Premier League club Sunderland moved ahead of Newcastle, coming in somewhere between 30th and 40th in the rankings. In the 2008/2009 season Sunderland posted revenues of £64m.
Gate receipts at the Stadium of Light for the 2008/9 season were £14m compared to £30m in the same campaign for Newcastle.
Vinay Bedi, a divisional director and fund manager at Newcastle investment manager Brewin Dolphin, also believes the Magpies could make a speedy return to the Top 20.
“Newcastle are one of the best-supported teams in the land with average gates over 45,000 and with the additional TV money, revenues will be well up on the previous year. It’s not surprising they dropped out of the table for the last season.”
Football finance expert Joe McLean, a partner at accountants Grant Thornton, says clubs like Newcastle and Sunderland will receive around £45m in TV revenues in the 2010/11 season.
He went on to say the £35m Newcastle received for striker Andy Carroll will not appear in the current year’s revenues, which he expects to return to around £90m.
He added: “It’s also likely that Newcastle United will make a profit in the current season with the club having reduced its wage bill dramatically over the last season.”
