Kurt Badenhausen reports in a recent Forbes article, ranking the 50 richest sports teams in the world, that the Chicago Cubs are the most valuable organization within the ‘Windy City’.
The baseball team representing North Side Chicago currently holds their spot as the 16th wealthiest sports team in the world. They are valued at $2.9 billion, which is an 8% increase from their 2017 valuation. The Chicago Cubs are the third wealthiest franchise in Major League Baseball. They are ranked just behind the New York Yankees and The Los Angeles Dodgers. The Yankees are valued at $4 billion, and the Dodgers at $3 billion.
Last season, the Cubs were also ranked behind the Boston Red Sox. The Rickett family owned Cubs have now surpassed the Sox and their $2.8 billion value. Their 8% increase took them from $2.68 billion in value to $2.8 billion, and gave them their third-place value holding. To top it all off, they moved from #18 to #16 on the “wealthiest sports teams in the world” list. You can say it has been quite an eventful last year for the Chicago team.
The Cubs even surpassed the Chicago Bears football team on this years list. Last year, in 2017, the Bears were worth $2.7 billion and tied with the Red Sox for the 16th spot was the most valuable sports team in the world. They have now fallen, tieing at number 18 with the San Francisco Giants. Both the teams are valued at $2.85 this year. They are the 7th richest NFL team.
The Chicago Bulls also make way in the top 50. They are placed at number 23, tied with the Denver Broncos. Both the teams are worth $2.6 billion. The Bulls did fall from their 2017 spot, but regardless they still increased their value by 4% in the last year. The Chicago basketball team is the 4th wealthiest team in the NBA.
No matter the ranking, Chicago is really making way in the world of sports, which is no surprise. The city is continuously upping their game in Baseball, Football, and Basketball and strengthening the Chicago name.
