It's Gold Trafford! Man United worth £1.16bn, the world's most valuable sports team

Manchester United boss Sir Alex Ferguson may be playing catch up with European champions Barcelona on the field, but the club are winning the financial battle off it, hands down. 

United have been announced as the most valuable sports team in the world at £1.16billion by Forbes magazine, beating NFL team Dallas Cowboys and the New York Yankees to the of the list.

United front: Sir Alex's side won a record 19th title and are also the most valuable sports team in the world

Real Madrid, worth £712million are in fifth place and are the second most valuable football club, while Arsenal (£740m) and Chelsea (£408m) are in seventh and 46th place respectively.

United’s advertising revenue has a big impact on their valuation, with the club having an £80m, four-year deal with shirt sponsor Aon and a £302.9m, 13-year deal with Nike.

Jumping for joy: Barcelona may be European champions but their La Liga rivals Real Madrid are worth more

The list is dominated by US sports American football and baseball with two Formula 1 entries - Ferrari (£626m) and McLaren (£506m) - with a number of European football giants making appearances, too.

Bayern Munich are in 19th position, valued £640m, Barcelona 26th (£605m), AC Milan 34th (£520m), and Juventus 49th (£390m). 

Winning formula: McLaren make it on to the Forbes rich list