MUMBAI: English football club Manchester United has emerged as the world?s most valuable sports team, according to Forbes report on the top 50 valuable sports teams around the world.

Man-U, which has filed for a $100 million IPO on Nasdaq, has been valued at $2.23 billion ahead of Spanish club Real Madrid, which is at No. 2 with a value of $1.88 billion.

Incidentally, all 32 National Football League (NFL) franchises have made it to the top 50 list with the Dallas Cowboys, Washington Redskins, New England Patriots and New York Giants making it to the top 10.

Seven Major League Baseball (MLB) teams have earned spots in the top 50 list with New York Yankees making it to the top 10 with a value of $1.85 billion.

Only two NBA teams, Los Angeles Lakers and New York Knicks, have made it to the top 50 list while none of the National Hockey League clubs figure in the list dominated by professional clubs from US.

As many as four NFL teams have entered the top 10 table besides two teams from MLB. Joining Man-U and Real Madrid in the top 10 list are Spanish club Barcelona at No. 8 list and English club Arsenal at No 10 spot.

The top 50 list has two Formula One racing teams, Ferrari with a value of $1.1 billion, and McLaren valued at $800 million.

Forbes Top 10 teams:
1. Manchester United (soccer) - $2.23 billion
2. Real Madrid (soccer) - $1.88 billion
3. New York Yankees (MLB) - $1.85 billion
4. Dallas Cowboys (NFL) - $1.85 billion
5. Washington Redskins (NFL) - $1.56 billion
6. Los Angeles Dodgers (MLB) - $1.40 billion
7. New England Patriots (NFL) - $1.40 billion
8. Barcelona (soccer) - $1.31 billion
9. New York Giants (NFL) - $1.30 billion
10. Arsenal (soccer) - $1.29 billion

MUMBAI: Manchester United has teamed up with Germany-based international sports media company UFA Sports to distribute the 2012 pre-season tour to TV viewers across the world.

The Red Devils are travelling over three different continents this summer to prepare for the upcoming Premier League campaign. With stops in Europe, Africa and Asia over a time period of three weeks, Sir Alex Ferguson?s men will compete in interesting friendly matches in sold-out stadiums to get into shape.

Manchester United will kick off the tour in South Africa on 18 July, before flying out to China to face Super League club Shanghai Shenhua in front of tens of thousands of Chinese United fans. In early August, the squad will return to Europe and finish off the tour with matches against teams from Western Europe, including the top match against FC Barcelona.

MUMBAI: After calling off its $1 billion initial public offering (IPO) in Singapore due to volatile market conditions, well-known English Premier League (EPL) club Manchester United has filed for a $100 million IPO with the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

It will become the first UK soccer club to go public in the US in more than a decade. The club was listed on the London Stock Exchange (LSE) from 1991 until June 2005.

The club, which is owned by American Glazer family, said it will issue Class A and Class B, with the latter controlling most of the voting rights. The club did not specify the launch date, stock symbol, price range or size of the IPO.

Manchester United said they intend to use all the net proceeds of the issue to reduce debt, which stands at $664 million higher than the $520 million revenue it earned last year.

"Our indebtedness could adversely affect our financial health and competitive position and reduce the availability of our cash flow to fund the hiring and retention of players and coaching staff," Manchester United said in its filing.

The team would become a wholly owned subsidiary of Manchester United Ltd, a newly formed holding company based in the Cayman Islands.

"In the Premier League, recent investment from wealthy team owners has led to teams with deep financial backing that are able to acquire top players and coaching staff, which could result in improved performance from those teams in domestic and European competitions,? the Manchester United filing said.

MUMBAI: Airtel Africa, a subsidiary of Indian telecom major Airtel, has sealed a partnership agreement with African pay TV platform DSTV that sees the two organisations working together to air a weekly TV football show, Airtel Rising Stars.

Grassroots football is part of Airtel Africa?s vision to develop and nurture young football talent and compliments Africa?s largest pan African youth football initiative, the Airtel Rising Stars, which is supported by Airtel and Manchester United.

DSTV will cover live football matches in various countries, leading towards a pan African inter-country final of the Airtel Rising Stars youth tournament being held in Nairobi later this year. The show will also trace the career paths of African footballers, demonstrating sporting journeys that have led to fame and success.

?We have always believed that football has the ability to develop and connect youth across the continent. This was the rationale behind our pan African football tournament and talent development program, Airtel Rising Stars, which is now into its second year. The enthusiasm Africa has for the sport is undeniable. Our decision to be involved in this new show compliments our ongoing commitment to support the passions of our young adult consumers," explains Airtel Africa CMO Andre Beyers.

?Airtel Football? focuses on different aspects of the sport across the continent and airs on Super Sport 9 every Monday.

Aside from profiling African footballers, the fast-paced half hour show explores a wide range of topics including insights on the sports fraternity, culture across various African countries and major tournaments/games being played on the continent. The show will run for 44 weeks and is also available to viewers in high definition.

MUMBAI: Manchester United, the globally popular football club, is reportedly mulling moving its initial public offering to US from Singapore.

Two reasons are being cited for Man-U?s move. The first reason is to secure higher valuation by moving the IPO to US. Secondly, Malcolm Glazer, the American owner of the club, wants to use the IPO in US to retain control by using a dual-class share structure.

Man-U, which was planning a $1 billion IPO on Singapore Stock Exchange, had delayed the public float because of volatility in the stock markets.