Liverpool valuation remains clear of Man City ahead of $98m boost and Champions League return

Liverpool has been ranked among the most valuable teams in the world ahead of the next chapter at Anfield. Jürgen Klopp took charge of his final match as boss last week with Arne Slot having now been confirmed as his successor.

Slot will get down to work at the start of June and has a Champions League campaign to look forward to after Liverpool ended the season in third place in the Premier League.

And the return to Europe's premier competition could bring a significant financial boost to Liverpool as it bids to close the gap on Real Madrid, Manchester United and Barcelona.

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According to Forbes, Liverpool is ranked as the fourth most valuable club in world football at $5.4bn (£4.3bn/€5bn) with another five Premier League teams making up the top 10. Real Madrid still leads the way at $6.6bn (£5.2bn/€6.1bn) ahead of United in second $6.5bn (£5.1bn/€6bn).

It is claimed that Sir Jim Ratcliffe's recent investment at Old Trafford ensured United's place in second, with the deal valued at $500m (£393m/€462m) more than what the club was estimated to be worth a year ago.

Despite its treble success in 2022/23 and Premier League title win this season, Manchester City sits fifth and continues to trail Liverpool with a valuation of $5.1bn (£4bn/€4.7bn). Tottenham, Chelsea and Arsenal all feature in the top 10 with the Premier League's domestic TV deal worth twice more than any of the other top five leagues in Europe.

Liverpool's return to the Champions League couldn't come at a better time, with the clubs reaching the latter stages of this season's competition each pocketing more than $100m (£79m/€92m). It is claimed the winner of Saturday's final, between Real Madrid and Borussia Dortmund, will earn a further $22m (£17m/€20m).

Next season could see those amounts hiked further. The report states that clubs could see a 'one-third increase' in TV money when te competition and number of matches are expanded.

However, one significant issue that is stopping Liverpool close the gap on those sides above them is its kit deal with Nike. The contract, which is due to expire at the end of next season, is worth around $38m (£30m/€35m) per year, according to Football Benchmark.

That is comfortably the lowest of those sides in the top 10, with United believed to be earning close to $98m (£83m/€106m) per year with Adidas. SportBusiness reports Liverpool will agree a deal with the German giant, worth a similar amount to United's contract.

Liverpool.com says: Liverpool's place in fourth comes on the back of a campaign outside of the Champions League. A return to Europe's top table will only bring more financial reward and evidently, the Adidas deal can't come soon enough. The figures still show the work that Manchester City still has to do to close the gap though.