London (AFP)

FC Barcelona set a new record at the head of the latest Deloitte cabinet ranking, based on the revenue generated in 2018/2019 by the wealthiest professional football clubs, while Paris SG wins a place in fifth position.

For the first time, the Barcelona club generated more than 840 million euros in revenue, 83 million euros more than Real Madrid over the same period.

The Madrid club ranks second with nearly 757 million euros, the two clubs thus exchanging their positions compared to the same study published in January 2019.

Manchester United remains in third place thanks to its 711 million euros of revenue generated in 2018/2019. The Red Devils remain the best-placed British club in the study, even though the audit firm Deloitte suggests that they could lose this position next year, either to Manchester City, outgoing Premier league champion, or of Liverpool, current title holder of the Champions League.

Paris Saint-Germain, the only French club ranked among the top 20 with newcomer Olympique Lyonnais, climbed one place and moved into 5th position with 636 million euros in revenue generated.

Deloitte explains that Barça’s policy of internalisation of merchandising and licensing activities has allowed the club to rely less on the fluctuating market for TV rights redistribution, while dramatically increasing its commercial revenues.

"The operations undertaken by the club brought him 383.5 million euros, more than the total revenue than the club ranked 12th," Borussia Dortmund, said Dan Jones, of the sports department at Deloitte. "Barça is the example of the club that adapts to changing market conditions," he said.

The Blaugrana having already announced that their overall turnover had increased for the 2018/2019 period, Deloitte also anticipates that its revenues could reach almost 900 million euros next year, allowing them to keep the lead of the classification still at least a year.

If the two highest steps in the ranking are once again occupied by Spanish clubs, the British teams are the most numerous among the 20 clubs studied.

The Deloitte cabinet ranking, called "Money League top 20", is based on the financial results of the major clubs in the English, French, German, Italian and Spanish championships.

© 2020 AFP