Disney Maintains Licensing Dominance with $63B in Retail Sales of Licensed Consumer Products
The Walt Disney Company continues to defend its title as the No. 1 Licensor in License Global's Top Global Licensors 2026 whitepaper, earning a staggering $63 billion from retail sales of licensed consumer products, a $1 billion increase from last year. In fact, Disney has claimed the top licensor spot every year since the Top Global Licensors whitepaper debuted in 1998.
This year's edition of the white paper, which was published on July 30, ranks the world's biggest brand owners by retail sales of licensed consumer products and experiences measured over the previous year, revealing total retail sales of $338.33 billion. Disney's $63 billion figure is nearly double the earnings of the No. 2 licensor, Authentic Brands Group, which clocks in at $36 billion, a $4 billion increase from last year. It doesn't appear that Disney will be unseated from the top spot anytime soon.
So how does Disney achieve this massive accomplishment year after year? License Global's Gianna Rosenbach recently did a deep dive into Disney and LEGO's ultrasuccessful licensing partnership. LEGO and Disney have been working together for almost 30 years. Before Lucasfilm was even a part of the Walt Disney Company, 'Star Wars' became the first IP that LEGO ever licensed.LEGO now spans a wide range of Disney IP, including Disney Princess, Marvel, and 'Star Wars'." Paul Gitter, executive vice president, global brand commercialization, Disney Consumer Products, calls the relationship between the two companies "a strong example of how modern licensing is entering a new era," adding that it is a shift "from individual transactions to integrated partnerships built around shared investment, innovation and sustained fan engagement."To find out where LEGO ranked this year, download the Top Global Licensors 2026 white paper.
On Aug. 4, The Walt Disney Company announced that it is restructuring its Consumer Products division, moving the majority of its operations from under Disney Experiences to Disney Entertainment Studios beginning in October. The move is expected to strengthen support for merchandise and licensing opportunities. The company operates across more than 100 product categories with worldwide reach spanning more than 180 countries.
Source: licenseglobal.com