Real Madrid report ´world record´ revenues

Real Madrid Wednesday announced net profit for the 2009-2010 season jumped 11.5 percent from the previous year on what it said were the highest revenues “of any sports institution in the world.”

The big-spending Spanish club reported annual profits of 24 million euros (30.6 million dollars), up from 21.5 million a year earlier.

It said gross revenues for the season were 442.3 million euros, up 8.6 percent from the previous year, “an amount that is the highest of any sports institution in the world.”

The club said its net debt had fallen 25.1 percent to 244.6 million euros.

Real was listed as the largest revenue-generating football club in the world, ahead of arch-rivals Barcelona and Manchester United of England, in the Football Money League released by the Deloitte business advisory firm in March.

Both Real and Barcelona have recently benefited from a sharp jump in earnings from television rights.

Real finished last season runners-up for the second straight year to Barcelona in Spain’s Primera Liga.

That was despite spending more than 250 million euros on new players in 2009, including a world record fee for Portuguese winger Cristiano Ronaldo from Manchester United.