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 Forbes has announced its annual valuations of the National Football League’s 32 teams. The Dallas Cowboys are the most valuable team in the league for the third consecutive year with a value of $1.65 billion. While team revenues rose 7% over the last year because of guaranteed TV contracts that paid out $4 billion, the recession’s impact on professional football can be seen in Forbes’ valuations.
The average franchise value for the NFL remained ostensibly flat ($1.043 billion compared to $1.04 billion in 2008), after seeing increases of 9 percent, 7 percent, and 10 percent over the last 4 years. The reason for the flattening is directly related to the financial climate and bad credit markets that discouraged buyers.
With the chilly economy and tight credit markets, eight teams went down in value over the past year: Indianapolis Colts, Miami Dolphins, St. Louis Rams, Detroit Lions, Jacksonville Jaguars, Atlanta Falcons, and Oakland Raiders. The decrease of these eight teams marks the first time in ten years that any team has decreased in value year-over-year.
The Raiders have the dubious distinction of moving the Minnesota Vikings out of the 32nd ranked franchise in terms of valuation, a position the Vikings had held since 2005
No franchise saw an increase in value more than 3 percent (Patriots, Bills, Chargers, Buccaneers), while six franchises saw their value remain flat compared to 2008 (Saints, Giants, Jets, Browns, Packers, Vikings). This compared to last year when ten franchises saw double-digit percentage increases, including two (Giants and Jets) seeing an increase in value of over 20 percent.
While the Cowboys remained the most valuable franchise, the most profitable (and second most valuable) is the Washington Redskins. The franchise saw operating income, a barometer for profitability, at $90.3 million. The Redskins are followed by the Patriots ($70.9 million), Buccaneers ($68.9 million), and Colts ($55.9 million).
According to Forbes, two franchises ran in the red this past year. The Seattle Seahawks are shown to have -$2.4 million, while the Oakland Raiders are shown to have an operating income of -$5.7 million. The Raiders' $5.7 million in operating losses is the third highest loss over the last 5 years. Only the Colts (-$17.3 million) and Vikings (-$19.1 million) have posted deeper operating losses.
Other points of interest, based on the Forbes NFL valuations from 2005-2009:
- Biggest decline in ranking: Detroit Lions (18 in 2005 to 28 in 2009)
- Steady at the top: The top six franchises in the 2009 rankings held the exact same positions in the 2008 ranks
- Drop and give me... The Colts drop seven positions this year from 8 in 2008 to 15 in 2009, Dolphins from 13 to 18.
Select Read More to see the complete Forbes NFL franchise valuations for 2009
2009 Forbes NFL Franchise Valuations
| Rank |
Team |
Current Value ($mil) |
1-Yr Value Change (%) |
Debt/Value (%) |
Revenue ($mil) |
Operating Income ($mil) |
| 1 |
Dallas Cowboys |
1,650 |
2 |
12 |
280 |
9.2 |
| 2 |
Washington Redskins |
1,550 |
1 |
15 |
345 |
90.3 |
| 3 |
New England Patriots |
1,361 |
3 |
21 |
302 |
70.9 |
| 4 |
New York Giants |
1,183 |
0 |
55 |
230 |
26.1 |
| 5 |
New York Jets |
1,170 |
0 |
64 |
227 |
24.3 |
| 6 |
Houston Texans |
1,150 |
2 |
26 |
256 |
41.5 |
| 7 |
Philadelphia Eagles |
1,123 |
1 |
16 |
250 |
48.8 |
| 8 |
Tampa Bay Buccaneers |
1,085 |
3 |
13 |
241 |
68.9 |
| 9 |
Chicago Bears |
1,082 |
2 |
9 |
241 |
41.6 |
| 10 |
Denver Broncos |
1,081 |
2 |
14 |
240 |
39.9 |
| 11 |
Baltimore Ravens |
1,079 |
2 |
25 |
240 |
44.3 |
| 12 |
Carolina Panthers |
1,049 |
1 |
18 |
238 |
22.9 |
| 13 |
Cleveland Browns |
1,032 |
0 |
15 |
235 |
20.2 |
| 14 |
Kansas City Chiefs |
1,027 |
1 |
13 |
228 |
52.4 |
| 15 |
Indianapolis Colts |
1,025 |
-5 |
4 |
233 |
55.9 |
| 16 |
Pittsburgh Steelers |
1,020 |
1 |
25 |
235 |
17.8 |
| 17 |
Green Bay Packers |
1,019 |
0 |
2 |
232 |
20.1 |
| 18 |
Miami Dolphins |
1,015 |
-3 |
39 |
242 |
26.6 |
| 19 |
Tennessee Titans |
1,000 |
1 |
13 |
232 |
24.4 |
| 20 |
Seattle Seahawks |
994 |
-2 |
12 |
231 |
-2.4 |
| 21 |
Cincinnati Bengals |
953 |
1 |
10 |
222 |
34.9 |
| 22 |
New Orleans Saints |
942 |
0 |
13 |
232 |
30.7 |
| 23 |
Arizona Cardinals |
935 |
2 |
16 |
223 |
23.9 |
| 24 |
San Diego Chargers |
917 |
3 |
14 |
224 |
41.6 |
| 25 |
St Louis Rams |
913 |
-2 |
7 |
217 |
22.3 |
| 26 |
Buffalo Bills |
909 |
3 |
14 |
222 |
39.5 |
| 27 |
San Francisco 49ers |
875 |
1 |
14 |
214 |
20.8 |
| 28 |
Detroit Lions |
872 |
-5 |
40 |
208 |
18.5 |
| 29 |
Jacksonville Jaguars |
866 |
-1 |
14 |
217 |
26.9 |
| 30 |
Atlanta Falcons |
856 |
-2 |
32 |
214 |
28.2 |
| 31 |
Minnesota Vikings |
835 |
0 |
38 |
209 |
8.2 |
| 32 |
Oakland Raiders |
797 |
-7 |
7 |
215 |
-5.7 |
Source: Forbes
 The latest issue of Forbes, featuring the 2009 NFL rankings, includes a cover story on legendary NFL coach Bill Parcells, now serving as Executive Vice President, Football Operations, for the Miami Dolphins (“Football’s $300 Million Man,” p. 98). Parcells added a record $300 million in incremental value to the last three teams he coached. Will he impact the value of the Dolphins franchise now that he is controlling the front office?
For more information, including the full rankings, expanded tables, charts, and stories, visit:
www.forbes.com/nfl
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