How valuable are the Atlanta Falcons?
According to Forbes' 2019 "World's 50 Most Valuable Sports Teams" list, the Atlanta team came in at 28.
The Falcons - owned by Arthur Blank - are valued at $2.6 billion, according to the list, thirteenth among the 32 NFL teams.
Atop the list were:
5. New York Nicks (NBA) - $4 billion
4. Barcelona (Soccer) - $4.02 billion
3. Real Madrid (Soccer) - $4.24 billion
2. New York Yankees (MLB) - $4.6 billion
1. Dallas Cowboys (NFL) - $5 billion
Forbes estimates that the value of sports teams has "skyrocketed" in just the last five years, largely due to media rights deals and more "owner-friendly collective bargaining agreements" that keep players costs low.
In 2012, only one of the 50 teams was worth more than $2 billion. Flash forward seven years - all 50 teams are billion-dollar operations.
The list was largely dominated by NFL teams - more than half of the top 50 teams are football franchises - but baseball, basket and soccer teams also ranked throughout.