Cubs’ Value Rises to $3.8 Billion in Latest Forbes Report

How happy are Major League Baseball that the latest franchise values from Forbes came out weeks after the lockout ended? According to the latest figures, the average MLB franchise is now worth an all-time high $2.07 billion. That’s an increase of 9% from last year, the largest jump in four years.

But sure, team ownership is a risky endeavor. And for those of you who are raising your hands to say value isn’t the same as profit, just understand that the former is more important to owners because their teams are an investment. Raking in cash is great, it’s just not the primary goal.

Of course, the ability to generate revenue via jersey patches and helmet decals starting next year means revenues and profits will both be up as well. That’s in addition to TV broadcast deals that are 26% higher than last year, in part due to new deals with Apple and NBC.

The Cubs saw an even bigger increase than the average, moving up 13% to an estimated value of $3.8 billion that still lags just a bit behind what the Ricketts family may be bidding on Chelsea Football Club. That valuation includes a $68 million operating income that wasn’t even among the top five teams in the league, though there are plenty of ways to get creative with the accounting there.

There’s no reason to belabor any of this further, so I’ll just leave off here and allow you to make of this information what you will.