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China and US main owners of top clubs

China and the United States now own more than 30 per cent of the world's top football clubs: Football ownership

The US is a clear leader as the largest single nation, accounting for 18 per cent of top 100 and 23 per cent of top 30. While this figure is boosted by the US ownership of most Major League Soccer (MLS) franchises, US organisations own a quarter of Premier League teams along with clubs in Italy and France too.

China is the next biggest country for ownership with 13 per cent of the top 100. Europe combined accounts for 28 per cent of the ownership of the top 100 clubs, with the UK as the biggest individual nation at seven per cent, behind Russia and Germany who both account for five per cent.

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