Yankees become MLB's 1st franchise worth $8B in Forbes rankings
The New York Yankees have made MLB history, becoming the first baseball team to be worth at least $8 billion in Forbes' annual franchise valuations, according to Forbes' Justin Teitelbaum and Brett Knight. The Yankees, who have never been toppled as MLB's most valuable franchise, are officially worth $8.2 billion, up 9% from 2024.
In its December list of the world's 50 most valuable sports franchises, Forbes had the Yankees fourth at $7.55 billion. The new $8.2 billion valuation would bump them past the NFL's Los Angeles Rams for third place on the all-sports list, behind only the NBA's Golden State Warriors and NFL's Dallas Cowboys.
However, the Yankees, who are owned by the Steinbrenner family, reported an operating loss of $57 million last year.
The Los Angeles Dodgers ($6.8 billion), Boston Red Sox ($4.8 billion), Chicago Cubs ($4.6 billion), and San Francisco Giants ($4 billion) round out the top five most valuable MLB franchises.
Meanwhile, the Chicago White Sox were the only MLB club that lost value in the last year. Following their 2024 season, in which they racked up a modern-era record 121 losses, the White Sox declined 2%, from $2.05 billion to $2 billion. Four other teams - the St. Louis Cardinals, Seattle Mariners, Colorado Rockies, and Tampa Bay Rays - didn't see their values change at all from Forbes' 2024 rankings.
The biggest overall jump in value belonged to the Athletics, who've relocated from their longtime home of Oakland to a temporary facility in West Sacramento. Despite plans to spend their next three campaign in a minor-league stadium while building their new ballpark in Las Vegas, the value of the vagabond A's jumped 50% to $1.8 billion after leaving the aging Oakland Coliseum.
Here's the complete list:
| RANK | TEAM | VALUE | 1-YEAR CHANGE |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | New York Yankees | $8.2B | +9% |
| 2 | Los Angeles Dodgers | $6.8B | +25% |
| 3 | Boston Red Sox | $4.8B | +7% |
| 4 | Chicago Cubs | $4.6B | +9% |
| 5 | San Francisco Giants | $4B | +5% |
| 6 | New York Mets | $3.2B | +7% |
| 7 | Philadelphia Phillies | $3.1B | +6% |
| 8 | Atlanta Braves | $3B | +7% |
| 9 | Houston Astros | $2.8B | +16% |
| 10 | Los Angeles Angels | $2.75B | +2% |
| 11 | St. Louis Cardinals | $2.55B | 0% |
| 12 | Texas Rangers | $2.45B | +2% |
| 13 | Seattle Mariners | $2.2B | 0% |
| 14 | Toronto Blue Jays | $2.15B | +2% |
| 15 | Washington Nationals | $2.1B | +5% |
| 16 | Chicago White Sox | $2B | -2% |
| 17 | San Diego Padres | $1.95B | +10% |
| 18 | Baltimore Orioles | $1.9B | +10% |
| 19 | Athletics | $1.8B | +50% |
| 20 | Milwaukee Brewers | $1.7B | +6% |
| 21 | Arizona Diamondbacks | $1.6B | +12% |
| 22 | Detroit Tigers | $1.55B | +7% |
| 23 | Minnesota Twins | $1.5B | +3% |
| 24 | Colorado Rockies | $1.475B | 0% |
| 25 | Cleveland Guardians | $1.4B | +4% |
| 26 | Pittsburgh Pirates | $1.35B | +2% |
| 27 | Cincinnati Reds | $1.325B | +6% |
| 28 | Kansas City Royals | $1.3B | +6% |
| 29 | Tampa Bay Rays | $1.25B | 0% |
| 30 | Miami Marlins | $1.05B | +5% |