Forbes Ranking: New England Patriots Second Most Valuable Franchise in NFL

The New England Patriots are the second most valuable franchise in the NFL, and the third most valuable franchise in all of sports, according to the latest Forbes listing. The Patriots have increased their value by 23% over the 2014 year.

The Patriots pulled in an estimated $494 million in revenue, second to just the Dallas Cowboys, and are valued at $3.2 billion (with a B). The Patriots are tied with the New York Yankees for 3rd place, behind soccer team Real Madrid ($3.3 billion) and the Cowboys ($4 billion).

"The average National Football League team is worth $2 billion," Forbes writes. "The $2 billion average is 38% more than a year ago, the biggest year-over-year increase since Forbes began tracking NFL values. The gain was fueled primarily by a $39 million increase in national revenue for each of the league's 32 teams.

"The vast majority of this national revenue increase came from the start of the league's new broadcasting deals. The NFL has the highest TV ratings and national broadcasting revenue of any U.S. professional sports league."

Forbes gives a lot of value to new stadiums, as well as revenue.

Patriots owner Robert Kraft bought the team in 1994 for $172 million. What a ridiculous return on original investment.