Premier League the moneybags of the world and poised to grow even wealthier

Real Madrid are the biggest single earners on planet football, raking in £236million last season, but three Premier clubs have stormed into the top five.

Manchester United are second in Deloitte's annual Football Money League with £212m, Chelsea have moved up to fourth and Arsenal are fifth on the back of their lucrative first year at the Emirates Stadium.

This trend looks certain to continue. Football is booming at the elite level and the next set of figures will be the first to include the rewards from the Premier League's latest £2.7billion broadcasting rights package.

Dan Jones, a partner in the sports business group at Deloitte, said: 'The Premier League has already gone global in the sense that it has viewers, players and investors from all around the world.

'It is the biggest league in the world with the biggest support. I've been asked for 10 years when the bubble is going to burst and it just gets stronger and stronger.

'Its current rate of growth is the strongest in four years.

'There are six Premier League teams in the top 20 and three in the top five but the TV deal is significant and next year we could end up with 10 in the top 20. That would be a staggering achievement.'

The power of the Premier League is founded in two main factors, according to Jones.

These are the investment in new stadia, prompted by the Hillsborough disaster in 1989, and the competition's collective nature.

Clubs are forbidden to strike their own broadcasting deals and money is distributed more evenly in England than in either Spain or Italy, the closest rival leagues.

This is one of the arguments behind the plan hatched by Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore to take competitive games abroad, despite fierce opposition from fans.

Scudamore's balancing act is to keep boosting the collective earning power of the League without allowing the biggest clubs to cut their ties and become even wealthier through independent broadcasting deals.

The controversial 'international round' of games planned for 2010/11 is effectively a concession to those clubs who believe huge pots of cash are waiting for them overseas.

Jones said: 'Manchester United estimate they have a worldwide fan base of 330million, with 139m whom they call active supporters.

'But at the moment their revenue is 315m euros (£234m), that's less than one euro per fan. That's the potential they can see around the world.'

Details reveal how Italy's biggest earners, AC Milan, command a greater proportion of their wealth from broadcasting because they negotiate the rights unilaterally.

Two-thirds of Milan's earnings in 2006/07 came from TV and only 13 per cent from their matches, compared to Arsenal, who earned 50 per cent from matches and 25 per cent from TV rights.

Milan banked nearly £45m more than Arsenal from their TV deal but total revenue was lower.

A Premier League spokesman said: 'Our member clubs have worked extremely hard to get to this position.

'It benefits every level of English football and we will continue to work hard to maintain and enhance this position.'

United's chances of closing the gap on Real in the next 12 months will hinge on the relative success of the pair in the Champions League.