Generally speaking it is based on the Clubs market. Whether it is a Big market team, such as the Chicago White Sox or the New York Yankees or a small market team such as the Tampa Bay Rays or the Kansas City Royals or something in between. The market is based on the size of the city's population and the teams subsequent fan base.
Big Market cities like Chicago and New York draw lots of fans thus drawing lots of revenue for the team to spend. Whereas, Smaller market clubs draw less and therefore make less money.
A teams relative success of course has something to do with the size of the fan base as well. Therefore a team like the Yankees who have won as many championships as they have also will draw bigger because of it.
Higher salaries make players work harder to get even higher salaries.
All teams that are soccer or football franchises have 11 players.
California, Giants, A's, Angels and Dodgers. Wait, what about the Padres? Question Fail.
The American Association of Independent Professional Baseball has fifty-four teams/franchises. For example this includes teams from Cleveland and Philadelphia.
Mike Morgan played for 12 franchises from 1978-2002, more than any other player.
Players negotiate and sign contracts with teams to determine a certain amount of money over a certain period of time. Teams can trade players (and their contracts) with other teams if they feel the need to. The better the player, the more money he will negotiate for.
Value of franchises (per Forbes) is Cowboys, Redskins, Patriots, Giants, Jets.
For the 2006 season, the total for the 30 teams was well over $2 billion. Check out the '2006 Team Salaries' link on this page to see the salaries broken down by team.
You can find a list of the current player salaries at http://sports.espn.go.com/mlb/teams/salaries?team=stl
Celtics have won 17 championships, and Lakers 16 - the two teams with the most championships. So yes, in many ways they are the most successful franchises in the NBA.
AFL teams are primarily from Australia, with franchises located in various states. The teams are based in the following states: Victoria (home to the majority of teams), New South Wales, Queensland, South Australia, Western Australia, and Tasmania. Additionally, there are teams based in the Northern Territory and the Australian Capital Territory.
Team owners limit the number of teams primarily to maintain competitive balance and ensure financial viability within a league. A reduced number of teams helps to keep talent distribution equitable, preventing a few teams from dominating. Additionally, fewer teams can lead to increased fan engagement and higher revenues per team, as the market can support a limited number of franchises more effectively. This strategy ultimately helps preserve the overall quality and appeal of the sport.