New York has 6 of the 50 most valuable sports franchises in the world

Six New York sports franchises across three leagues rank among the 50 most valuable in the world, including one that’s currently for sale.

Forbes has released their yearly valuation of sports franchises, and six New York teams are among the top 50 most valuable. The most valuable among them, the New York Yankees who are worth an MLB-high $5 billion dollars. The Dallas Cowboys, worth $5.5 billion, are the only franchise more valuable in the world.

New York’s other baseball team, the New York Mets, also made the list. The Mets, who are currently for sale, are worth $2.4 billion. That makes them the 41st most valuable sports franchise in the world and the sixth most valuable MLB franchise.

The New York Knicks are the most valuable NBA and third most valuable sports franchise in the world at $4.6 billion. They are a clear argument against winning increasing value. They haven’t won a championship since the 1970s, but that hasn’t stopped the team from raking in cash.

Their Big Apple counterparts, the Brooklyn Nets, are the 38th most valuable franchise in the world and the seventh most valuable NBA franchise. This is surprising considering the Nets’ inability to draw crowds to the Barclays Center. Over the last five years, the Nets have an average attendance rank of 28th in the NBA.

The New York Giants are the third most valuable NFL franchise and the ninth-most valuable team in the NFL at $3.9 billion. That’s quite the climb in value for the Mara family. They bought the team for just $500 way back in 1925. Even with inflation that’s an insane deal—$500 in 1925 is equivalent to $7,365 in 2020. There doesn’t seem to be a better investment than owning a sports team and the Mara family is key example of why.

Lastly, the New York Jets come in at 17th in the world and the eighth-most valuable NFL franchise at $3.2 billion. Gang Green is another example of a team that’s struggled to win who has no issues with franchise value.

The most notable New York teams to miss out on the list are the hockey teams. The New York Rangers do appear as an honorable mention. They are the most valuable sports franchise that isn’t a European soccer, NFL, MLB, or NBA team. The Rangers sit at $1.65 billion and Forbes lists them as the 70th most valuable sports franchise.

The Islanders and Devils were both left off the list as neither was valuable enough.