German football league breaks revenue record

Revenues in Germany’s top two divisions have increased for a 13th straight season and topped four billion euros for the first time, the German Football League reported on Thursday.

The annual figures for the DFL, which is made up of the Bundesliga and Bundesliga 2, show a 4.2 percent growth in revenue for the 36 clubs to 4.1 billion euros ($5.1 billion) in 2016/17.


Of that, 3.37 billion euros was earned by clubs in the top division, with Bayern Munich accounting for almost a fifth of that figure with revenue of 640.5 million euros. Fourteen clubs made more than 100 million euros each.

As in the season before, 16 of the 18 clubs in the top division posted profits after tax, although the 150 million euros of total profit was down from the 2015/16 season (206 million euros).

The DFL also reported that its clubs employ 20,000 people and provide work for 54,000 overall.

AFP