Top 10 Most Valuable Business Brands in Sports Currently

A buisness’ brand value is calculated as the estimated enterprise value the business would sell for in an arms-length transaction, less the enterprise value a typical industry peer of equal size would sell for. This is not a list that has been prepared after conducting a poll. Rather, this list has been compiled using hard financial data.Therefore, for a business, the brand value calculated is based on how much more money it would sell for in comparison with a similar company. So let’s take a look at the list:

#10 UFC

Brand Value in 2013: N/A

Brand Value in 2014: $440 Million

Ultimate Fighting Championship is the world’s largest promoter of mixed martial arts events and the UFC brand is now synonymous with MMA.

#9 MLBAM

Brand Value in 2013: $480 Million

Brand Value in 2014: $520 Million

MLBAM’s rapid growth , top shelf client portfolio and fat margins have enabled it to become more bigger and more profitable than any other technology buisness in sports.

With MLBAM being a $6 billion worth company, every franchise has an added value of $200 million for being part of it.

The MLBAM is the internet and the interactive branch of MLB and has about 4 million hits a day on its website. It provides news, statistics to visitors.

#8 NESN

Brand Value in 2013: $510 MIllion

Brand Value in 2014: $525 Million

Since the Red Sox won the World Series in 2013, NESN, the team’s regional sports channel, increased its monthly affiliate subscriber fee to $4.22 from $3.91

The New England Sports Network is a cable television network that covers the 6 New England States (except 2 towns in Connecticut). They are the primary broadcasters for the Boston Red Sox and used to be a carrier for Fox Sports and ESPN News.

#7 YES

Brand Value in 2013: $ 625 Million

Brand Value in 2014: $ 680 MIllion

YES posted the highest revenue ($540 Million) and operating income ($270 MIllion) of any regional Sports Network in 2013. Yankees Entertainment and Sports Network is the United States of America’s most watched sports network and was valued at $3.8 billion, when Rupert Murdoch’s News Corp. bought a stake in RSN.

The channel is a joint venture between 21st Century Fox, Yankee Global Enterprises, Goldman Sachs and NJ Holdings, with 21st Century Fox having a controlling stake of 49%, Yankee Global Enterprises having 25% and the remaining 2 having 12% each.

#6 Reebok

Brand Value in 2013: $ 1.1 Billion

Brand Value in 2014: $ 880 Million

Sales of Reebok branded items have dropped 15% over the past two years to $ 2.85 Billion from $3.36 Billion. Reebok has been one of the most recognisable sports brands in the world, and has been a subsidiary of Adidas since 2005, after the German company bought it.

Reebok has been trying to build a niche market by getting into sponsorship deals with tough fitness groups like CrossFit and Spartan Race.

#5 Under Armour

Brand Value in 2013: $ 3.7 Billion

Brand Value in 2014: $ 4.1 Billion

Under Armour is an American sportswear company, which also supplies casual apparel . It serves a worldwide audience with additional offices in Amsterdam, Hong Kong, Toronto.

Under Armour over took Adidas in 2014 to become the second-largest sports apparel brand in the U.S with sales of $ 1.2 Billion, 20% more than a year ago, representing 14% of the U.S market.

#4 Sky Sports

Brand Value in 2013: $ 4.1 Billion

Brand Value in 2014: $ 4.5 Billion

Sky Sports is a television network based in the United Kingdom. For a number of years, Sky Sports has been pumping in money in British sports, with the formation of the English Premier League in 1992 being its major contribution.

Sky Sports is the top sports channel in Britain and Ireland and has rights to show some of the most watched events like the Ashes series, Formula 1, Heineken Cup, Premier League and La Liga.

#3 Adidas

Brand Value in 2013: $ 7.1 Billion

Brand Value in 2014: $ 5.8 Billion

Adidas is a very popular sportswear brand from Germany. Not only do they have their own famous sports line, they are also known for other popular brands such as Reebok, Rockport as well as 9.1% of the famous German football club FC Bayern Munich.

They also sell shirts, watches, eyewear, etc . But Adidas has not been helped by repeated injuries to NBA star Derrick Rose, the Chicago Bulls Guard whom they signed back in 2012 for a 13-year $185 million deal, the biggest ever.

#2 ESPN

Brand Value in 2013: $ 15 Billion

Brand Value in 2014: $ 16.5 Billion

Entertainment and Sports Programming Network is a US based cable and satellite television channel which is a joint venture between The Walt Disney Company and the Hearst Corporation. However, it is The Walt Disney Company that runs the network, having an 80% stake with the Hearst Corporation holding the remaining 20%.

ESPN will generate some $ 4.5 Billion in operating cash flow this year and commands the highest average monthly affiliate subscriber fee,$6.04.

#1 Nike

Brand Value in 2013: $ 17.3 Billion

Brand Value in 2014: $ 19 Billion

Nike is an American based company that sells footwear, apparel and other sports related accessories. As of 2012, Nike employs more than 44,000 people worldwide and had a revenue of more than $24.1 billion. Nike is named after the Greek goddess of victory.

The company commands 62% of the U.S athletic footwear market, including the Jordan brand, Bryant brand and LeBron brand. It’s market share rose 100 basis points in August last year.