As we bid farewell to the World Cup, European seasons are set to restart having been put on pause.
The change in date of the World Cup to accommodate the awarding of hosting duties to Qatar has meant a change in the usual summertime tournament.
Players across Europe’s top five leagues have either had a winter break or will have been competing in the tournament which saw Argentina crowned champions.
The return of Serie A football in Italy is eagerly anticipated by fans all over the world, not just in the country itself. A globally significant league which is home to some of the greatest players in the game.
Napoli were the somewhat surprise leaders going into the break before the World Cup and will remain amongst the favourites in Serie A odds to end the season top of the table.
The leader from Naples is amongst the most valuable sides financially in Italy. According to transfermarkt the five most valuable sides in Serie A are:
- AC Milan
- Inter Milan
- Napoli
- Juventus
- AS Roma
AC Milan – Total Market Value €569 Million
Last season’s champions pipped their local rivals to the title and were in second place this season before the break for the World Cup.
Owned by RedBird Capital Partners, the club has the highest value in the league and some of the most high-profile sellable player assets in the league.
Rafael Leão, the Portuguese winger is just 23 years old and valued at around €85 million. An amount which many of the biggest clubs in the world will see well worth the expense should they try to sign one of AC Milans most important players.
With a mix of signing and developing young players like Leão, and bringing in veterans like Olivier Giroud, AC Milan continue to be a force in Serie A once again.
Inter Milan – Total Market Value €556.45 Million
Last season’s runners up in Serie A are the most valuable side in the league and prior to the break for the World Cup they were at fifth place in the table.
Managed by Simone Inzaghi, they have some of the most highly valued players in the league at their disposal and the funding from Steven Zhang who controls the club.
World Cup winner Lautaro Martinez is valued at €75 million, while his strike partner Romelu Lukaku is estimated to be worth €55 million. Both players though struggled during the World Cup, despite Martinez’s success with Argentina who played a backup role to Julian Álvarez.
Inter have relied on loans and free transfers at times, while selling players on for profits, which has left them with work to do to catch up in the 2022/23 race.
Napoli – Total Market Value €539.80 Million
The league leaders lost some key players at the end of last season. Kalidou Koulibaly and Fabien Ruiz earnt them over €60 million, while they lost Lorenzo Insigne and Dries Mertens amongst others on free transfers.
Italian film producer Aurelio De Laurentiis owns the club and has invested in young players like Khvicha Kvaratskhelia for €10 million who has blown everyone away with his ability. Some loans and smaller fee signings have also come in which has helped the club continue to perform at the top level while also increasing its value.
While not being the biggest spenders, Napoli continue to compete and fight for their first Serie A title since 1998/90.
Juventus – Total Market Value €452.30 Million
After a number of years of dominance, Juventus have fallen behind their rivals and issues off the pitch appears to show this won’t be changing any time soon.
Despite their legal issues, Juventus went into the World Cup break in third place on a run of six-wins in a row.
Owned by the Agnelli family, they put up big fees for transfers in acquiring the likes of Dusan Vlahovic and Paul Pogba. Players like this have brought sponsorship and followers from around the world, though as a squad, it could be considered they are overspending on wages.
They are 36-time champions of Serie A and will continue to bring in revenue from their support around the world, but they need to improve their recruitment of younger players as some like Moise Kean and Kaio Jorge have not really paid off to the level they expect.
AS Roma – Total Market Value €365.55 Million
Managed by Jose Mourinho and owned by Dan Friedkin, an American billionaire and film producer, they are looking to bring glory to Rome where the last time they won Serie A was in 2000/01.
Big money is often paid in wages, singing players on free transfers to compensate this, such as in the case of Paulo Dybala and Andrea Belotti. Neither have huge sell-on potential and the club will see winning the league as money well spent.
They went into the World Cup break in seventh though, not what they would have expected. The majority of their highest valued players are also at the older end of the age range, making them harder to sell.
Working on building for the future needs to be prioritised, with the club in danger of falling behind their rivals with some older stars not delivering what Mourinho and co would have hoped.
