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Financial Review: Melbourne Demons the 6th most valuable brand in the AFL

FritschyBusiness
in Melbourne Demons

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https://www.afr.com/companies/media-and-marketing/ranked-what-the-top-10-afl-and-nrl-team-brands-are-worth-20241008-p5kgm0

Australian Football League’s Collingwood is the most valuable sports club in Australia and is $30 million ahead of its nearest rival in a ranking of football teams by the worth of their brand. The Brisbane Broncos are the most valuable National Rugby League team.

Despite struggling to make the finals series this year after winning the premiership in 2023, the Magpies brand is worth $145 million, consultancy Brand Finance Australia said in a report. Carlton was the next best in the AFL at $115 million.

The NRL’s Broncos, Penrith Panthers and South Sydney Rabbitohs were among the top 10 brands across the two football competitions. Seven AFL clubs, all based in Victoria, make up the rest of the list.

The report also showed a high crossover of fans who follow both Australian rules and rugby league.

On-field success does not necessarily translate to brand value. The NRL’s Wests Tigers, for instance, are eleventh in the rankings (worth $42 million) despite coming last for the past three seasons. This year’s AFL grand finalists, the Sydney Swans and the Brisbane Lions, sit 10th and 11th in their competition’s brand value rankings, worth $66 million and $64 million respectively.

But the best way for sports clubs to improve their brand value and strength was to win more matches, said Brand Finance managing director Mark Crowe.

The most lucrative brands have either a rich heritage or are operating in fast-growing markets, he said.

“Collingwood is generating significant commercial revenues, match day revenues, as clearly evidenced by the drawing capacity of nearly all the Melbourne clubs,” Mr Crowe said. “It’s the history and the heritage of the club.

“The Broncos have really benefited from the fact they were essentially a one-team town in Brisbane for most of its history. They had that benefit of being a very strong brand in a very strong market for rugby league.

“They’re very resilient and can continue to maintain their strength and value with less reliance on-field performance.”

How to measure a team’s brand value Brand Finance has valued international sports brands for more than a decade, but the current report was the first time it has focused on Australian clubs. It ranked them based on two factors – brand value and brand strength.

Value looks at how much of a company’s profits are attributable to its “brand”. It is a combination of the strength score, how much it would cost to license the brand’s assets and the company’s forecast revenue. It includes a valuation of the trade name, trademarks and logo.

A brand’s strength is scored out of 100, measuring attributes such as marketing investment, financial performance and sustainability.

Collingwood, which had more members than any other AFL club in 2024, topped the brand strength list with 81.4 points. The Broncos were top of the NRL’s list and second when including AFL clubs, with 80.9 points.

The total brand value of the 35 clubs in the two codes combined was $2.3 billion – about $1.3 billion represented by the 18 AFL clubs and $1 billion from the 17 NRL teams.

Melbourne-based clubs – including NRL’s Melbourne Storm – contributed $878 million to the total figure.

Other clubs to feature near the top of the list include Carlton and Richmond, while West Coast is the most valuable non-Victorian AFL brand, worth $68 million. “When you look at the most valuable clubs, they’re not necessarily reflecting the competition ladder order,” Mr Crowe said. “That goes to the heart of a brand and its strength.”

The Broncos, who finished 12th before parting with coach Kevin Walters, are worth $124 million, the richest in rugby league. It is slightly ahead of recent four-time premiership winners the Penrith Panthers, worth $108 million.

One of the abnormalities in the NRL list is the Redcliffe Dolphins, a club that entered the top-tier competition in 2023. The Dolphins team is in ninth spot on the NRL brand value ranking list, ahead of teams such as the Newcastle Knights, the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles and the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks.

“[The Dolphins] really demonstrate the opportunity in that south-east Queensland market. There’s … no real evidence the Dolphins have had a negative impact on the Broncos. In fact, it could be argued they’ve had a positive impact now there’s this [local] rivalry that didn’t exist before.“

The sports Australians follow

Australian rules football was the country’s most followed sport, Brand Finance found, with 76.3 per cent of more than 1000 people surveyed claiming to watch the game and 10.7 per cent declaring it their favourite.

Nearly 70 per cent of respondents said they followed rugby league and 10.4 per cent listed it as the preferred sport. Forty-six per cent of respondents said they followed both codes.

“The AFL and NRL are just in such a commanding position because they’re offering content 40 weeks a year, which is just manna for media rights because you’ve just got that consistent offering,” Mr Crowe said.

Other popular sports in 2024 included the Olympics (73.4 per cent), cricket (62.6 per cent) and soccer (57.7 per cent). Tennis, Formula 1 and basketball also made the list, but rugby union was notably absent.

“You’re certainly seeing in the NRL the resurgence of two brands – Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs and the St George Illawarra Dragons. If they can continue to improve in terms of on-field performance, they are likely to strengthen considerably,” Mr Crowe said.

But there will always be some teams that struggle, particularly for newer clubs in competitive geographic areas. “The Gold Coast Suns and the GWS Giants are operating in nontraditional markets for the AFL where they’ve got two rival brands doing very well – the Swans and the Lions were in the grand final this year.

“They need to win, but even that alone is not proving to be necessarily of major short-term significance.”

rzybictvkntd1.jpeg

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    • Thanks 3
     
     

    As i suspected. We CAN be a Big Club if we empower the right people. 

    We have to start thinking Bigger and increasing the pressure inside the Club, just a tad more (not too much). 

    Close enough is not good enough……

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    • Like 1
    • Whispering_Jack changed the title to Financial Review: Melbourne Demons the 6th most valuable brand in the AFL

    3 minutes ago, Rab D Nesbitt said:

    BP5 didn’t make the top 10? 😂

    I've just belatedly realised what BP5 stands for after thinking it was a typo. Well played. 🤣

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    • Like 1
    44 minutes ago, FritschyBusiness said:

     

    https://www.afr.com/companies/media-and-marketing/ranked-what-the-top-10-afl-and-nrl-team-brands-are-worth-20241008-p5kgm0

    Australian Football League’s Collingwood is the most valuable sports club in Australia and is $30 million ahead of its nearest rival in a ranking of football teams by the worth of their brand. The Brisbane Broncos are the most valuable National Rugby League team.

    Despite struggling to make the finals series this year after winning the premiership in 2023, the Magpies brand is worth $145 million, consultancy Brand Finance Australia said in a report. Carlton was the next best in the AFL at $115 million.

    The NRL’s Broncos, Penrith Panthers and South Sydney Rabbitohs were among the top 10 brands across the two football competitions. Seven AFL clubs, all based in Victoria, make up the rest of the list.

    The report also showed a high crossover of fans who follow both Australian rules and rugby league.

    On-field success does not necessarily translate to brand value. The NRL’s Wests Tigers, for instance, are eleventh in the rankings (worth $42 million) despite coming last for the past three seasons. This year’s AFL grand finalists, the Sydney Swans and the Brisbane Lions, sit 10th and 11th in their competition’s brand value rankings, worth $66 million and $64 million respectively.

    But the best way for sports clubs to improve their brand value and strength was to win more matches, said Brand Finance managing director Mark Crowe.

    The most lucrative brands have either a rich heritage or are operating in fast-growing markets, he said.

    “Collingwood is generating significant commercial revenues, match day revenues, as clearly evidenced by the drawing capacity of nearly all the Melbourne clubs,” Mr Crowe said. “It’s the history and the heritage of the club.

    “The Broncos have really benefited from the fact they were essentially a one-team town in Brisbane for most of its history. They had that benefit of being a very strong brand in a very strong market for rugby league.

    “They’re very resilient and can continue to maintain their strength and value with less reliance on-field performance.”

    How to measure a team’s brand value Brand Finance has valued international sports brands for more than a decade, but the current report was the first time it has focused on Australian clubs. It ranked them based on two factors – brand value and brand strength.

    Value looks at how much of a company’s profits are attributable to its “brand”. It is a combination of the strength score, how much it would cost to license the brand’s assets and the company’s forecast revenue. It includes a valuation of the trade name, trademarks and logo.

    A brand’s strength is scored out of 100, measuring attributes such as marketing investment, financial performance and sustainability.

    Collingwood, which had more members than any other AFL club in 2024, topped the brand strength list with 81.4 points. The Broncos were top of the NRL’s list and second when including AFL clubs, with 80.9 points.

    The total brand value of the 35 clubs in the two codes combined was $2.3 billion – about $1.3 billion represented by the 18 AFL clubs and $1 billion from the 17 NRL teams.

    Melbourne-based clubs – including NRL’s Melbourne Storm – contributed $878 million to the total figure.

    Other clubs to feature near the top of the list include Carlton and Richmond, while West Coast is the most valuable non-Victorian AFL brand, worth $68 million. “When you look at the most valuable clubs, they’re not necessarily reflecting the competition ladder order,” Mr Crowe said. “That goes to the heart of a brand and its strength.”

    The Broncos, who finished 12th before parting with coach Kevin Walters, are worth $124 million, the richest in rugby league. It is slightly ahead of recent four-time premiership winners the Penrith Panthers, worth $108 million.

    One of the abnormalities in the NRL list is the Redcliffe Dolphins, a club that entered the top-tier competition in 2023. The Dolphins team is in ninth spot on the NRL brand value ranking list, ahead of teams such as the Newcastle Knights, the Manly Warringah Sea Eagles and the Cronulla-Sutherland Sharks.

    “[The Dolphins] really demonstrate the opportunity in that south-east Queensland market. There’s … no real evidence the Dolphins have had a negative impact on the Broncos. In fact, it could be argued they’ve had a positive impact now there’s this [local] rivalry that didn’t exist before.“

    The sports Australians follow

    Australian rules football was the country’s most followed sport, Brand Finance found, with 76.3 per cent of more than 1000 people surveyed claiming to watch the game and 10.7 per cent declaring it their favourite.

    Nearly 70 per cent of respondents said they followed rugby league and 10.4 per cent listed it as the preferred sport. Forty-six per cent of respondents said they followed both codes.

    “The AFL and NRL are just in such a commanding position because they’re offering content 40 weeks a year, which is just manna for media rights because you’ve just got that consistent offering,” Mr Crowe said.

    Other popular sports in 2024 included the Olympics (73.4 per cent), cricket (62.6 per cent) and soccer (57.7 per cent). Tennis, Formula 1 and basketball also made the list, but rugby union was notably absent.

    “You’re certainly seeing in the NRL the resurgence of two brands – Canterbury-Bankstown Bulldogs and the St George Illawarra Dragons. If they can continue to improve in terms of on-field performance, they are likely to strengthen considerably,” Mr Crowe said.

    But there will always be some teams that struggle, particularly for newer clubs in competitive geographic areas. “The Gold Coast Suns and the GWS Giants are operating in nontraditional markets for the AFL where they’ve got two rival brands doing very well – the Swans and the Lions were in the grand final this year.

    “They need to win, but even that alone is not proving to be necessarily of major short-term significance.”

    rzybictvkntd1.jpeg

    Maybe don’t show this to a certain someone, it may only cause more disruption.

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    • Like 1
     

    And after ranking 10/18, the next story will be that old chestnut about how Sydney has the most fans of any team in Australia.

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    Second part of the graph somewhat surprising.

    Wonder what the demographic of the 1000 people interviewed were.

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    • Like 2

    29 minutes ago, Sir Why You Little said:

    As i suspected. We CAN be a Big Club if we empower the right people. 

    We have to start thinking Bigger and increasing the pressure inside the Club, just a tad more (not too much). 

    Close enough is not good enough……

    Look at the numbers not the rankings...best of the irrelevant group.

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    • Like 1
    27 minutes ago, gs77 said:

    I've just belatedly realised what BP5 stands for after thinking it was a typo. Well played. 🤣

    All talks about trading him were shut down until after this report got released, lest our brand value plummet. 

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    • Haha 1
    29 minutes ago, IRW said:

    Look at the numbers not the rankings...best of the irrelevant group.

    Strive to get better 

    The MFC should never be considered irrelevant 

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    • Like 1

    Jeepers- maybe my wife is right - i have bought too much merchandise 🤣

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    • Haha 8
    • Clap 1
    4 minutes ago, Sideshow Bob said:

    Jeepers- maybe my wife is right - i have bought too much merchandise 🤣

    Gunna stick with your name Sideshow? He spoke so eloquently at the BnF!

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    • Like 1

    1 hour ago, gs77 said:

    I've just belatedly realised what BP5 stands for after thinking it was a typo. Well played. 🤣

    Hahaha....me too.  Yes,very appropriate. 

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    • Like 1
    47 minutes ago, Engorged Onion said:

    Gunna stick with your name Sideshow? He spoke so eloquently at the BnF!

    For a while at least 😀 - it definitely fits me.

    'Kolt from old Regret' is warming on me though as a new version. Would need to custom a man from Snowy River poster though. 

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    • Thanks 1
    • Love 1

    Imagine how strong the brand would have been had we not tripped on our own boot laces for the last 60 years.

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    • Like 2

    26 minutes ago, Queanbeyan Demon said:

    Imagine how strong the brand would have been had we not tripped on our own boot laces for the last 60 years.

    Yep, the that gap of 64 - 87 really hurt.  As research has shown our decline was deliberate with the changing of zones to favour other clubs by the VFL (Plus our inability to become professional until much later than there clubs) ..... bastards! :)  

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    • Sad 1

    No surprise we are lower than the few clubs ahead of us and a bit of surpised we weren't lower, but imagine the hand wringing on here if we were placed low on this list. 

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    • Like 2

    A ranking of 6th is pretty good.

    Being called the Melbourne Football Club makes a big difference.

    Otherwise, we would of gone the way of South Melbourne (Sydney) and Fitzroy (Brisbane) and ended up the Gold Coast, or Hobart or Canberra or Darwin Demons years ago.

     

    Now we just gotta keep winning more Premierships and get that Home Base built at the Caulfield Racecourse!

     

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    • Like 3
     

    Dubious methodology. I hate them both but no way we are more valuable than the Eagles or the Hawks.

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    • Like 1
    5 hours ago, Whispering_Jack said:

    Who takes responsibility for this?

    Given that the buck stops with the CEO ...

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