The World's Most Valuable Sports Brands

The company was founded on January 25, 1964, as Blue Ribbon Sports, by Bill Bowerman and Phil Knight, and officially became Nike, Inc. on May 30, 1971. The company takes its name from the Greek goddess of victory.

Nike has an industry-leading share of 38% of the branded footwear market. In 2012, Nike became the NFL's licensed-apparel maker instead of Reebok in a five-year deal.

With popular TV shows like Sportscenter and First Take, ESPN ranks second in the world's most valuable sports brands. More than 60% of ESPN's revenue comes from their subscriber base. In 2014, ESPN charged cable companies the largest fee by any network. Whether people watched ESPN or not, there was a fee of $6.04 per subscriber charged. This is $6.9 billion in revenue from subscribers alone.]

The rest of the money for ESPN comes from advertising. The breakdown of advertising revenue goes like this. TV ads generated $3.5 billion per year, digital ads generated $674 million per year and magazine ads generated 238 million per year.

The Adidas Group produced 256 million pairs of shoes globally in 2013. Brands usually make between $2 and $5 on every $100 shoe. This is because there are several costs in producing and selling an item. Along with production, Adidas has to pay for designers, raw materials (leather, sole), shipping, import taxes and marketing.

Sky Sports is a group of sports television channels operated by the satellite pay-TV company Sky plc. Sky Sports is the dominant subscription television sports brand in the United Kingdom and Ireland.

If you love watching sport, you’ll be aware that Sky offer the most-complete TV coverage. Sky Sports offers eight channels, including a dedicated Sky Sports News channel and the Sky Sports F1 channel. Sky customers can watch an array of events including 126 live Premier League games, live rugby (including England internationals), Formula 1 and England cricket matches. Sky customers can add it to their service for £27.50/month
Barney Francis manages the Sky Sports network.

Within the United States, Gatorade accounts for approximately 75% of market share in the sports drink category. The University of Florida has been making millions for decades now thanks to the institution's 20% stake over Gatorade profits.

Reebok is a subsidiary of Adidas. Reebok has seen continued top-line growth in the last 14 quarters. Reebok has transformed itself from a traditional sports brand to a purely fitness brand. For almost a decade, Reebok famously sponsored the NFL's Manning brothers, paying them millions in the process. Interestingly, Reebok has only a 1.6% share of the $2.4 billion U.S. basketball sneaker market compared to 93% for Nike. There’s little appreciable difference between a pair of Reebok crosstrainers and one from a competitor. It is selling image and other intangibles. Reebok has created a full lifestyle in the process.

Under Armour sponsors the Golden State Warriors' Stephen Curry. In May 2016, Under Armour struck an apparel deal worth $280 million with the University of California, Los Angeles. According to S&P Global Market Intelligence, Under Armour is expected to grow revenue by 25% this year after chalking up a 29% revenue gain in 2016. Investors are optimistic about Under Armour opining that it could be the next $10 billion brand.

Wall Street at large likes Under Armour, rating it "outperform" and calling for more than 30% upside to the stock in the next 18 months.

Madden NFL 17 was the top selling game for August 2016. FIFA 17 has been the fastest selling edition of the franchise.

The YES Network is the most-watched regional sports network in the United States. The monthly subscriber fee it charges operators is $2.80 which is behind only ESPN. The Yankees make enough money from YES Network to pay for the team salaries. The YES Network is focused on New York, the country's largest and most valuable media market.

The channel is named after the Madison Square Garden sports and entertainment venue in Midtown Manhattan. It telecasts more than 400 live events every year. Additionally, the MSG is traded on the New York Stock Exchange.