by Nkem Iregbulem
In America, football and soccer refer to two different sports. However, in the UK, American football doesn’t exist, so football and soccer are synonymous. While American football is the most popular sport in America, soccer, otherwise known as association football, remains the most popular sport in the world. With time, soccer has begun to win over the hearts of the American people. If you want to benefit from the increasing popularity of the sport around the world, consider investing in a soccer related stock.
You have five main choices: Manchester United PLC (MANU), Juventus Football Club S.p.A. (JVTSF), Goals Soccer Centres PLC (GOAL), Olympique Lyonnais Groupe (OQLGF), and Borussia Dortmund GmbH & Co KGaA (BORUF). The MANU and GOAL stocks can be found on the New York Stock Exchange and London Stock Exchange, respectively, but the OQLGF, BORUF, and JVTSF stocks are all traded over-the-counter.
Manchester United Football Club, a professional football club based in England, is widely considered one of the world’s best soccer teams. The team and its activities are managed by Manchester United. The company is responsible for the club’s news, sports features, media network, fan zone, and team merchandise. It generates most of its revenue from three principal sectors: Commercial, Broadcasting, and Matchday. The company has increased its revenue each fiscal year since 2015 and enjoys a 3-year revenue growth rate of 10.3%. The company’s stock has a very high PE ratio of 806.12 but a much lower forward PE ratio of 80.0. Manchester United has a market cap of $3.46 billion, and its stock pays a small dividend yield of 0.86%. With a price-sales ratio of 4.14, its stock is somewhat overpriced. This stock can be found on the New York Stock Exchange.
Juventus Football Club SpA is a company that operates as a professional soccer club based in Italy. The Juventus Football Club has one of the largest fan bases worldwide. It generates the majority of its revenue from advertising, sponsorships, ticket sales, and the licensing of television and media rights. The company has a market cap of $741.9 million. It has increased its revenue each fiscal year since 2011 and boasts a 3-year revenue growth rate of 21.24%. Its stock, which is traded over-the-counter, has a price to earnings ratio of 46.04, a price-sales ratio of 1.21, and a price-to-book ratio of 4.74.
Another soccer related stock to consider is that of Goals Soccer Centres PLC, a company based in the UK that operates more than 40 5-a-side soccer centers in the UK and one in Los Angeles. Of the five soccer related companies, Goals Soccer Centres boasts the largest market cap of $6.43 billion. The company’s stock has a current PE ratio of 14.26 and forward PE ratio of 12.39. Its stock has a price-sales ratio of 1.97 and a low price-to-book ratio of 0.65. The company faces a negative 3-year revenue growth rate of -1.56% as its revenue has been decreasing each fiscal year since 2014. You can find this stock on the London Stock Exchange.
You may also want to look at Olympique Lyonnais Groupe, a company headquartered in France. The company owns and manages the Olympique Lyonnais soccer team based in Lyon. This club is supported by a very loyal and active fanbase. The company generates a great deal of its revenue from ticket sales, player trading, sponsorships, advertising, and media licenses. Olympique Lyonnais Groupe’s revenue has been increasing each fiscal year since 2015 as the company boasts a 3-year revenue growth rate of 23.82%. Its stock is traded in the over-the-counter market, giving the company a market cap of $208.9 million. The company’s stock has a PE ratio of 20.22, an excellent price-sales ratio of 0.96, and a low price-to-book ratio of 0.65.
One last soccer related company to consider investing in is Borussia Dortmund GmbH & Co KGaA, which operates Borussia Dortmund, a German professional football club based in Dortmund, North Rhine-Westphalia. Most of the company’s revenue comes from sponsorships, catering, player transfers, TV marketing, and ticket sales. Its revenue has been increasing each fiscal year since 2014 as it enjoys a 3-year revenue growth rate of 15.88%. The company has a market cap of $689.86 million and pays a small dividend yield of 0.85%. Borussia Dortmund’s stock has a PE ratio of 18.30 and a lower forward PE ratio of 9.74. Traded over-the-counter, its stock has a price-to-book ratio of 1.70 and a price-sales ratio of 1.16.
As soccer’s popularity grows across the world, you may want to consider getting in on the game by investing your money in the stocks of some of these football clubs and companies.
