by Lewis Ambrose

A study carried out by S&P Capital IQ’s has devised a Credit Football League, ranking clubs based on how financially sound they are.

Years of being careful in the transfer market and balancing the books on player wages has paid off, as Arsenal are now self sustainable with bigger and better commercial deals coming in all the time. Now the club is able to sign players Mesut Özil and Alexis Sánchez without any concern.

Only Ajax rated higher than Arsenal in the study, with both clubs said to have “balanced financial structures” in place.

Based on credit assessments at the end of the 2013/14 season the Gunners were ranked as the number one club in England, and have since improved a number of commercial deals including a bumper contract which was signed with kit supplier Puma.

Manchester City sat in third place, with Tottenham back in tenth.

Meanwhile, Chelsea were assessed on a different criteria and deemed more credit worthy than Liverpool as well as Spanish giants Real Madrid and Barcelona.

Manchester United fell from fourth to sixteenth, after the first season following Sir Alex Ferguson’s departure saw the club finish outside of the Champions League places and miss out on European football altogether.

“Although the game of football has remained relatively constant over the last century, the business of football has changed dramatically,” said Pavle Sabic, director of credit market development at S&P Capital IQ.

“The financial health of a modern football club is now as much a consideration for its owners and investors as its performance on the pitch.”

Finance is becoming more and more important in the game, and Arsenal are in an incredibly strong position.