Nike ranked first in Forbes list of the most valuable sports business brands. Nike was followed in the top-five by ESPN, Adidas, Sky Sports and Gatorade. Reebok and Under Armour also made the top-ten list.

The rankings are part of the Forbes annual Fab 40 list.  Using proprietary data base and methodology, the Fab 40 values the top 10 names in sports in four distinct categories: athletes, businesses, events and teams.

Forbes put Nike's value at $15 billion, up 40 percent from its last Fab 40. Forbes' editors wrote, “Nike has an industry-leading 38 percent share of the branded footwear market and Nike brand apparel sales increased 9 percent last year, to $5.4 billion. Within the past 18 months Nike has continued to expand its roster by splashing its swoosh logo on more products in more leagues, including new uniforms for the French Football Federation as well as the college football teams featured in the Bowl Championship Series. Perhaps the most “global” of any Fab 40 member, of Nike-branded sales of $18.1 billion last year, $7.6 billion were in North America, $3.8 billion came from Western Europe, $2.1 billion from Greater China and $2.7 billion from emerging markets.”

The top ten sports business brands:

  1. Nike – $15 billion
  2. ESPN – $11 billion
  3. Adidas – $5 billion
  4. Sky Sports – $3 billion
  5. Gatorade – $2.5 billion
  6. Reebok – $1.5 billion
  7. Under Armour – $1.0 billion
  8. EA Sports – $625 million
  9. YES Network – $600 million
  10. MSG – $500 million

The top five sports events brands:

  1. Super Bowl – $425 million
  2. Summer Olympic Games – $230 million
  3. FIFA World Cup – $147 million
  4. World Series – $140 million
  5. UEFA Champions League – $132 million
  6. Winter Olympic Games – $123 million
  7. Daytona 500 – $112 million
  8. NCAA Men's Final Four – $92 million
  9. MLB All-Star Week – $76 million
  10. Kentucky Derby – $70 million

The top ten sports athlete brands:

  1. Tiger Woods – $55 million
  2. Roger Federer – $26 million
  3. Phil Mickelson – $24 million.
  4. David Beckham – $20 million
  5. LeBron James – $20 million
  6. Kobe Bryant – $14 million
  7. Maria Sharapova – $9 million
  8. Dale Earnhardt Jr. – $9 million
  9. Cristiano Ronaldo – $8 million
  10. Shaun White – $7 million

The top ten sports team brands:

  1. New York Yankees – $340 million
  2. Manchester United – $269 million
  3. Real Madrid – $264 million
  4. Dallas Cowboys – $193 million
  5. Bayern Munich – $179million
  6. Boston Red Sox – $173 million
  7. Barcelona – $172 million
  8. Arsenal – $158 million
  9. AC Milan – $147 million
  10. New England Patriots – $146 million