Michael Jordan in line to bank millions if PSG win Champions League

Paris Saint-Germain will be vying for their first Champions League victory this Saturday as they face Inter Milan in the final, with basketball legend Michael Jordan rooting for the French titans due to his exclusive partnership with the club.

has transformed into a successful entrepreneur. The Chicago Bulls icon bought a stake in the Charlotte Hornets franchise, subsequently turning over a profit of more than $2 billion, and has since established a NASCAR team alongside stock car veteran Denny Hamlin.

 

The Jordan brand is also flourishing, with the Nike subsidiary raking in roughly $7 billion annually. Jordan pockets an estimated $350 million each year from a five percent royalty share he holds, and he’s made over $7 million solely from PSG merchandise sales.

 

While PSG may appear to have always been a powerhouse in European football, their prominence has only emerged within the past 15 years. The club was floundering until Qatar Sports Investments (QSI), a Qatari government-backed investment fund, bought 70 percent of the organisation in 2011, before snapping up the remaining 30 percent a year later.

In 2013, under new ownership, PSG clinched its first French League title in 29 years and has since added another nine championships to its tally. PSG has transitioned from a money-losing entity to a profit-making machine, a transformation that has been expedited by Jordan’s involvement.

In 2018, Jordan formed a partnership with Paris Saint-Germain (PSG), marking the first time a football team had ever collaborated with the brand. The Jordan logo not only appealed to football fans, leading to increased sales, but also attracted interest from NBA fans and has since become a fashion symbol.

Both PSG and Jordan experienced a surge in sales in 2021 after Lionel Messi joined the club following his departure from Barcelona. In the first 24 hours alone, 832,000 jerseys were sold, shattering the previous record of 520,000 set when Cristiano Ronaldo transferred from Real Madrid to Juventus in 2018.

 

It’s estimated that PSG generated $140 million from Messi jersey sales alone, which would have earned Jordan $7 million due to his share of the royalties. The rise in popularity, coupled with the partnership with Jordan, has led to PSG opening club stores in New York, Tokyo, and London.

PSG now earns more revenue from merchandise and licensing deals each year than from media rights and ticket sales, with the Jordan brand enhancing its global image. The club has been on an upward trajectory ever since and is now aiming to secure its first-ever Champions League title.

For years, PSG has aspired to win the Champions League but has always fallen short. The closest the French club came was in 2020, but they suffered a 1-0 defeat to Bayern Munich in the final, with former player Kingsley Coman scoring the game’s only goal.