According to Forbes latest valuations of sports teams around the world, Manchester United have become the first one to be valued at over $3 billion -- $3.3 billion to be precise (£2.1 billion). This is substantially more than the $2.1 billion valuation of the NFL's Dallas Cowboys, the next team on Forbes' list.

I'm far from an expert on the finances of football clubs. Apparently though, the club's shares have soared since they were offered on the New York Stock Exchange in August. Shares of United were initially offered publicly at $14 and they are now slightly under $17. This has proved to be a factor in the increase of the club's value. It has also added to the wealth of the controlling Glazer family...

Other factors to the increase in United's value include the lucrative new television deals all around the world that the Premier League has negotiated for, United's current prospects in the Premier League and UEFA Champions League, and new sponsorship deals. The club pretty much has a sponsor for everything.

So yeah, this is kind of cool I guess. What's not cool is that I probably should have bought some shares at $14 in August.