Real Madrid have been named as the most valuable football club in the world by marketing experts, who placed Manchester United second and Manchester City fourth.

Premier League clubs occupied five of the top 10 positions and eight of the top 20 in the London School of Marketing rankings -- a sign of the financial power of the English top flight.

Reigning European champions Barcelona were ranked third, with Bayern Munich the fifth and last club deemed to be valued at more than £1 billion.

Real, who have won a record 10 European Cups, were valued at £2.070bn, followed by United, at £2.050bn and Barcelona at £2.007bn.

City were deemed to be worth £2bn, the valuation quoted when a Chinese company paid £265 million for a 13 percent stake in their parent company, City Football Group, earlier this month.

It means their value has risen 94 percent since Sheikh Mansour's 2008 takeover, although the Abu Dhabi owner has also invested more than £1bn in the club.

Chelsea were placed sixth, Arsenal, seventh and Liverpool eighth, with Tottenham (13th), Newcastle (18th) and West Ham (19th) all in the top 20.

There are four Italian clubs, three Spanish, three German, one French and one Turkish in the top 20.

Top 20 (value in million pounds):

1. Real Madrid - £2,070m

2. Manchester United - £2,050m

3. Barcelona - £2,007m

4. Manchester City - £2,000m

5. Bayern Munich - £1,492m

6. Chelsea - £870m

7. Arsenal - £832m

8. Liverpool - £624m

9. Juventus - £531m

10. AC Milan - £492m

11. Borussia Dortmund - £445m

12. Paris St Germain - £403m

13. Tottenham Hotspur - £381m

14. FC Schalke - £363m

15. Inter Milan - £279m

16. Atletico de Madrid - £277m

17. Napoli - £224m

18. Newcastle United - £222m

19. West Ham United - £196m

20. Galatasaray - £187m

"Messi is recovering for the Madrid-Barcelona game. He is hoping to play El Clasico, but injuries have their process.” Barca president said. Photo: AFP