São Paulo, Brazil's 4th top-earning club, among few in profit in 2025 | OneFootball

São Paulo has already released its 2025 financial statements, showing record revenue of R$ 1.085 billion (up 47%) and a return to surplus, at R$ 56.9 million, after its biggest deficit ever in 2024. Despite the positive figures, the Deliberative Council once again rejected the financial report submitted by president Harry Massis Júnior.

This picture is far from simple, and that is precisely what fueled the internal resistance to approving the accounts. The main point of concern lies in the makeup of this record revenue. Of the total R$ 835.9 million generated by football (77% of the pie), R$ 283.8 million came from player transfers, nearly double what had initially been projected.

However, nationwide, Tricolor’s numbers stood out, placing the Morumbi club in 4th place among the teams with the highest revenue last season.

São Paulo ranked only behind Flamengo (R$ 2.08 billion), Palmeiras (R$ 1.78 billion), and Botafogo (R$ 1.4 billion), according to a survey by Globo Esporte. Fluminense rounds out the top five on the list with revenue of R$ 1.02 billion.

The number of Brazilian teams posting a surplus last year was low, with only nine clubs among the 24 analyzed. And Tricolor had the 5th-best result, with R$ 56.9 million in profit in 2025.

Flamengo, Palmeiras, Vasco, and Mirassol, in that order, posted figures above São Paulo’s last season. The list of teams with positive financial statements is completed by Grêmio, Bragantino, Juventude, and Internacional.

Botafogo, despite its high total revenue, had the 2nd-largest deficit in 2025, at R$ 290.8 million. Fluminense also appeared on the list, in 12th place, with a negative R$ 51.5 million. Atlético-MG tops the ranking, with R$ 882.1 million in the red, and Corinthians had the 4th-worst result, at R$ 143.4 million.

If Tricolor fans believe the SAF is the club’s great solution, it is worth paying close attention. In addition to Atlético and Botafogo, four other SAF clubs also posted losses above R$ 100 million in the period: Bahia (R$ 154.6 million), Cruzeiro (R$ 114.9 million), Coritiba (R$ 113.9 million), and Fortaleza (R$ 120.1 million), as reported by GE.

“I don’t see it as a coincidence that many SAF clubs appear among the biggest deficits. The first wave of SAFs in Brazil happened precisely at clubs that were under the greatest financial pressure, with high debt levels, cash-flow problems, and liabilities built up over many years,” analyzed Pedro Weber, a partner at Chenus, a company specializing in sports investments.

“In some cases, beyond the inherited burden, there was also a lack of greater diligence in defining the leverage limits that the new shareholders could take on within the operation. Some projects ended up accelerating sporting investment before the financial structure was fully stabilized,” the specialist added.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇧🇷 here.