Forbes Magazine has put out their annual list of the fifty most valuable sports franchises in the world, and it is completely dominated by the National Football League. All 32 NFL teams are on the list, to include the Minnesota Vikings, who come in at number 41 with an estimated valuation of $774 million.
The Forbes blurb on the Vikings points out that the Vikings' stadium situation is unsettled, and that their stadium revenues lag badly behind the rest of the National Football League. Of course, you knew that already.
The only NFL teams that the Vikings rank ahead of on the list are the Oakland Raiders (number 43) and the Jacksonville Jaguars (number 45).
How ridiculous is the money in the National Football League? So ridiculous that, despite being third from the bottom in terms of value in their own sport, the Minnesota Vikings are more valuable than every team in the NBA (the New York Knicks and the Los Angeles Lakers were the only two NBA teams on the list, at 47th and 48th, respectively), and more valuable than all but three teams in Major League Baseball. . .the New York Yankees (third overall), the Boston Red Sox (31st), and the Los Angeles Dodgers (38th). Considering the Dodgers' current mess, it's a little surprising to see them on there, but there they are.
One can only wonder how much the Vikings' value will go up when they move into a new stadium. Hopefully it will be a new stadium in Minnesota so that we can find out.