THE North East’s top two football clubs are sitting on the fringes of the game’s top 20, but analysts warn they will need to secure Champions League football to break into the clique of big earners.

Newcastle’s revenues jumped from £52m to £88.5m in the 2010/11 season, raising them to 25th in the Deloitte Football Money League for that year. Sunderland’s revenue was up 21% to £79.4m, positioning them at 30th.

The season saw Newcastle celebrate their return to the Premier League with a 12th place finish, while Sunderland edged ahead on the last day of the season to end up 10th.

Newcastle spent several years among the top 20 on the Deloitte earners list, but dropped out in 2009/10 due to their relegation to the Championship at the end of the previous season.

Real Madrid remain the top revenue earners in the world with £433m, followed by Barcelona with £407m.

There are six British clubs in the top 20, with Manchester United leading the way in third with £331.4m. Revenue excludes items such as player transfer fees, VAT and other sales-related taxes.

The combined revenue of the top 20 is over £3.7bn, and accounts for over a quarter of the total European market. The top six have remained the same for the last three years.

Dan Jones, partner in the Sports Business Group at Deloitte, said: “Continued growth of the top 20 clubs during 2010/11 emphasises the strength of football’s top clubs, especially in these tough economic times.

“Whilst revenue growth has slowed from 8% in 2009/10 to 3% in 2010/11, their large and loyal supporter bases, ability to drive strong broadcast audiences and continuing attraction to corporate partners has made them relatively resilient to the economic downturn.”

Brewin Dolphin’s divisional director Vinay Bedi said the list highlights the importance of Champions League qualification. Just one of the top 20 clubs did not play in European competition that year. He said: “To get into this sort of bracket, both Sunderland and Newcastle need to look at the Champions League as their primary target.

“It’s what the games’s all about now. It’s not so much about winning the league as getting into these competitions that will give you the big revenue streams. It doesn’t matter how good your brand management is, if you’re not playing well on the pitch you’re not getting the revenues.”