Despite a challenging season which saw them sack coach Kevin Walters after missing the finals, the Broncos have been rated the strongest brand in the NRL.
A leading brand valuation consultancy has the Broncos ahead of the all-conquering Panthers, placing their valuations at $124 million and $108 million, respectively.
Boosted by their long run as the only team in Brisbane and some of the biggest names in the sport on their books, the Broncos reign supreme despite not having tasted premiership glory since 2006.
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Across all Aussie sporting brands, Brisbane come in second, behind only AFL powerhouse Collingwood's valuation of $145 million.
"This valuation of Australia’s biggest sporting clubs shows that despite being almost entirely domestic competitions, Australian brands are as strong as some of the brands playing in the world’s richest and biggest European and American football leagues," Mark Crowe from Brand Finance Australia said.
"The Australian clubs have incredibly valuable assets in the form of their brands – value that can be measured and built for the benefit of the AFL and NRL."
At the other end of the equation, the Sharks, Dragons and Titans make up the bottom three, with Gold Coast considered the least valuable brand in the NRL.
| 1. Brisbane Broncos | 10. Newcastle Knights |
| 2. Penrith Panthers | 11. Wests Tigers |
| 3. South Sydney Rabbitohs | 12. Manly Sea Eagles |
| 4. North Queensland Cowboys | 13. Canberra Raiders |
| 5. Parramatta Eels | 14. New Zealand Warriors |
| 6. Sydney Roosters | 15. Cronulla Sharks |
| 7. Melbourne Storm | 16. St G.-Illawarra Dragons |
| 8. Canterbury Bulldogs | 17. Gold Coast Titans |
| 9. Dolphins | *Rankings via Brand Finance |
In the battle for Sydney supremacy, the Swans' brand is valued at $66 million, coming in behind Penrith, South Sydney ($72m), Parramatta ($71m) and the Roosters ($68m).
The Suns make it a Gold Coast quinella at the bottom of the table, also ranked as the least valuable brand in the AFL.
According to Brand Finanace: "Brand value is understood as the net economic benefit that a brand owner would achieve by licensing the brand in the open market."
