Trophyless but second…United named 2nd-most valuable sports team in world Manchester United players celebrat
Manchester United players celebrat

Manchester United players celebrate

Manchester United are the second most valuable sports team on the planet, according to Forbes.

The Premier League club are worth an incredible £3.16 billion according to the magazine, coming in ahead of rivals such as Real Madrid, Bayern Munich and Manchester City.

United failed to lift a single trophy last season, finishing a distant 19 points behind neighbours City in the league, but the top brass at the club can be content in the knowledge that their brand is still thriving.

The 2017 Europa League winners are ahead of both La Liga giants Real Madrid and Barcelona in the list, who are third and fourth and valued at £3.13bn and £3.11bn respectively.

Bayern Munich are the only other football team outside the Premier League to make the list, sitting 12th and valued at £2.35bn.

City are 30th (£1.89bn), while Arsenal (£1.71bn) are worth more than London rivals Chelsea (£1.58bn), with the pair ranked at 39th and 46th on the list.

“There has never been a better time to own a top-notch pro sports franchise,’ said Kurt Badenhausen, a senior editor at Forbes.

“Blockbuster TV contracts and owner-friendly collective bargaining agreements are fuelling record sale prices across major sports leagues.”

There were a whopping 29 NFL teams on the list, including top of tree Dallas Cowboys, who are worth a jaw-dropping £3.67bn.

US sports dominated the list, with eight NBA teams also included, and six MLB franchises.

In a sign of the difficult times facing motor racing, not one Formula One team featured in the top 50.

Meanwhile, Alexis Sanchez is set to join Manchester United’s pre-season tour of the United States after the club confirmed the Chile forward’s visa issue has been resolved.

Sanchez was absent from United’s flight to Los Angeles on Sunday due to what the Premier League side said was an “administrative issue”.

It later emerged American authorities hadn’t granted Sanchez a visa, reportedly because the former Arsenal star accepted a 16-month suspended prison sentence in Spain over a tax issue.

Speaking about the Sanchez’s absence at a press conference on Wednesday, United manager Jose Mourinho said: “It’s really bad and he’s really sad. It’s not good for him and not good for me, or for the  team.

“There is no-one to blame. I know the club is making the effort but the US authorities have their processes.”

But Sanchez has now been given the visa after all and can link up with Mourinho’s squad as they start their build-up to the new Premier League season.

“Sanchez’s issue is all sorted and he will fly out to the USA very shortly,” a United spokesperson told the Guardian yesterday.

Sanchez posted a picture on Instagram yesterday accompanied by the caption: “The last training in Manchester, soon” followed by a picture of the US flag.

United were scheduled to play the first match of their tour against Club America in Phoenix yesterday, before taking on San Jose Earthquakes on Sunday.

Mourinho’s men are also scheduled to face AC Milan, Liverpool and Real Madrid before opening their Premier League campaign against Leicester on August 10.

Mourinho also expects new signing Diogo Dalot to be sidelined until September as he continues to recover from a knee injury.

The Portugal Under-21 international became Mourinho’s first off-season acquisition when he made the switch from Porto last month, penning a five-year deal at Old Trafford.

United were well aware when they signed Dalot that he could miss the start of the new season after picking up an injury during a training session with the Dragons in April.

The 19-year-old full-back joined the Red Devils on their pre-season tour of the United States, but is only likely to return to training once Mourinho’s squad get back to England.

“Dalot is injured; we knew that but we didn’t want to lose him because of that,” Mourinho told a Press conference in Los Angeles.

“He is recovering really well. We think he can start training with the team when we go back to England.

“He will not be ready for the start of the season but we think he’ll be ready for September.”—  Dailymail online-AFP.

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