Patriots Among Top 5 Most Valuable NFL Teams, Report Says

Three NFL franchises are worth more than $10 billion each for the first time in league history. But the New England Patriots are not one of those teams.

Sportico released Wednesday its updated NFL franchise valuation ranking. The Dallas Cowboys remain the leader at $12.8 billion. They are followed by the Los Angeles Rams ($10.43 billion) and New York Giants ($10.25 billion).

The Patriots are fourth at $8.76 billion. It’s the third straight year Sportico had New England ranked fourth. The average NFL team value is $7.13 billion.

We are witnessing an explosion in the valuation of sports franchises across the spectrum. Two years ago, Josh Harris bought the Washington Commanders for $6.05 billion.

On Thursday, the NBA approved the sale of the Boston Celtics to Bill Chisholm for $6.1 billion.

In June, Los Angeles Dodgers owner Mark Walter agreed to buy a controlling share of the Lakers in a deal that put the value of the NBA franchise at $10 billion.

In addition, we have seen several NFL teams selling minority shares of ownership, inflating franchise value. Among the most notable was former Patriots quarterback Tom Brady buying a share of the Las Vegas Raiders.

Former Giants quarterback Eli Manning explored buying a share of his team only to be priced out of the market.

Last year, Philadelphia Eagles owner Jeffrey Lurie sold an 8% share of his club in a deal which put the franchise value at $8.3 billion.

Why do sports franchises, and NFL teams in particular, continue to skyrocket in value? All you have to do is follow the money.

In 2021, the National Football League signed an 11-year, $111 billion media rights deal.

Last month, the NBA completed an 11-year, $76 billion deal for its media rights.