Houston Texans Rank High in Forbes' 50 Most Valuable Sports Franchises

Forbes has the Houston Texans estimated as the sixteenth most valuable sports franchise in the world, which is good enough for fifth-best in the NFL behind the Dallas Cowboys, New England Patriots, Washington Redskins, and New York Giants.

That's pretty impressive for a franchise that has been in existence for just over a decade.  The NFL had a dominant showing on the list, with twenty teams snagging spots for 2015.

Of course, you probably expected that.  From the Forbes article:

The undisputed TV king in the world of sports is the NFL, which kicked off new network deals last year worth more than $5 billion a year, not including its $1.5 billion-a-year pact with DirecTV.

The NBA is about to leap forward with massive increases in available cap money for each team, thanks to new network deals.  Forbes continued their story with:

The NBA inked a $2.66 billion-a-year deal in October with ESPN and TNT, which was triple the previous rate.

Regional sports networks are committing to long-term deals with baseball teams, like the Los Angeles Dodgers’ 25-year, $8.35 billion contract with Time Warner Cable. The English Premier League joined the party in February with a $2.7 billion-a-year pact with Sky, which kicks off in 2016 and represents a 70% bump on the current deal.

The world’s 50 most valuable sports teams are now worth $1.75 billion on average, up 31% from 2014. The minimum valuation to make the cut is $1.15 billion, versus $856 million a year ago, thanks largely to the soaring worth of NBA and MLB teams. The top 50 includes 22 baseball and basketball franchises, compared to only 10 in 2014.

The Forbes article has a slide show you have to click through to see all fifty teams, but...

Ryan Mayer of CBS Local Sports was kind enough to provide a complete list:

1) Real Madrid- $3.26 billion

2t) Dallas Cowboys- $3.2 billion

2t) New York Yankees- $3.2 billion

4) FC Barcelona- $3.16 billion

5) Manchester United $3.1 billion

6t) Los Angeles Lakers- $2.6 billion

6t) New England Patriots- $2.6 billion

8) New York Knicks- $2.5 billion

9t) Los Angeles Dodgers- $2.4 billion

9t) Washington Redskins- $2.4 billion

11) Bayern Munich- $2.35 billion

12t) Boston Red Sox- $2.1 billion

12t) New York Giants- $2.1 billion

14t) Chicago Bulls- $2 billion

14t) San Francisco Giants- $2 billion

16) Houston Texans- $1.85 billion

17t) Chicago Cubs- $1.8 billion

17t) New York Jets- $1.8 billion

19) Philadelphia Eagles- $1.75 billion

20t) Boston Celtics- $1.7 billion

20t) Chicago Bears- $1.7 billion

22t) Los Angeles Clippers- $1.6 billion

22t) San Francisco 49ers- $1.6 billion

24) Baltimore Ravens- $1.5 billion

25) Brooklyn Nets- $1.5 billion

26) Denver Broncos- $1.45 billion

27t) Indianapolis Colts- $1.4 billion

27t) St. Louis Cardinals- $1.4 billion

29t) Green Bay Packers- $1.38 billion

29t) Manchester City- $1.39 billion

31) Chelsea- $1.37 billion

32t) Ferrari- $1.35 billion

32t) New York Mets- $1.35 billion

32t) Pittsburgh Steelers- $1.35 billion

35) Seattle Seahawks- $1.33 billion

36) Arsenal- $1.31 billion

37t) Golden State Warriors- $1.3 billion

37t) Los Angeles Angels of Anaheim- $1.3 billion

37t) Miami Dolphins- $1.3 billion

37t) Toronto Maple Leafs- $1.3 billion

41) Washington Nationals- $1.28 billion

42t) Carolina Panthers- $1.25 billion

42t) Houston Rockets- $1.25 billion

42t) Philadelphia Phillies- $1.25 billion

45) Tampa Bay Buccaneers- $1.23 billion

46) Texas Rangers- $1.22 billion

47) Miami Heat- $1.18 billion

48) Tennessee Titans- $1.16 billion

49) Atlanta Braves- $1.15 billion

49) Dallas Mavericks- $1.15 billion

49) Minnesota Vikings- $1.15 billion

It is simply amazing that the Texans are worth so much with only a brief history of existence and relatively minimal success on the field, winning two division titles and two playoff games.  Does this suggest that the Texans might actually top the list should they win one or more Super Bowls?!!

Share your excitement below as we all attempt to digest the vast amount of wealth that is wrapped around the global sports entertainment industry.