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Clash of the giants

Paris Saint-Germain and Internazionale go head to head in the Champions League final later today. The French heavyweights would be first-time winners, while the Italian Serie A runners-up are chasing a fourth triumph. Off the pitch, the two clubs say a lot about the state of the game.

PSG are owned by Qatar Sports Investments, a vehicle of the Gulf state that took majority ownership of the club from 2011. Distressed debt investor Oaktree seized control of Inter from Suning last year after the Chinese retail group failed to repay a €400mn loan in time.

Whereas Inter will feel confident of defying the odds after beating FC Barcelona in the semi-finals, the Italian club’s finances are also overshadowed by PSG.

The French side’s operating revenue, bolstered by sponsorships with Qatar Airways and Visit Qatar, came to more than €800mn in 2023-24, roughly double the equivalent figure at Inter, according to Football Benchmark.

PSG’s staff costs of €659mn equated to 82 per cent of those revenues, whereas Inter’s €227mn wage bill was a more prudent 57 per cent. The French club’s net spend — the difference between the price for players signed and sold — was €518mn from 2021-22 to 2024-25, whereas Inter recorded a net income of €115mn in that time.

Both teams have reduced their pre-tax losses in recent seasons, with PSG’s €56mn in 2023-24 still bigger than Inter’s €27mn.

But which club is more valuable? According to Football Benchmark’s 10th annual valuations report, PSG’s enterprise value, including debt, is more than €3.7bn, the eighth highest in Europe. Ranked 14th with an EV of €1.7bn, Inter wasn’t even the highest-ranked Italian club. That accolade went to rivals AC Milan, owned by Gerry Cardinale’s RedBird Capital, with an EV of €1.8bn.

Inter has reached this stage with a far smaller budget than PSG. But the numbers are only part of the story.

PSG boss Nasser Al-Khelaïfi, who leads QSI and sits on the board of Qatar’s sovereign wealth fund, is already a powerful figure in football. He was credited with helping to bring down the attempted breakaway European Super League in April 2021, sits on Uefa’s executive committee, chairs the influential European Club Association and Qatari broadcaster beIN.

But if PSG win the Champions League after parting ways with Kylian Mbappé, Lionel Messi and Neymar, would validate Al-Khelaïfi’s decision to shift PSG’s focus from megastars to a more youthful, hard-working team. 

And although Qatar hosted the Fifa World Cup in 2022, the biggest prize in European football some would argue would be overdue reward for the Gulf state, which has invested so heavily in pursuit of success and brand recognition.  Some fans might see it as further evidence of the corruption of the game.

In my view globalisation in football is here to stay, but it is still possible to enjoy the game at a local level if you prefer.   Funding for local facilities needs to be enhanced as an offset.

 

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