Each transfer window in football allows for an update to the ranking of the most expensive players in history. In this case, we've compiled The 10 Most Expensive Transfers in Football History.
Interestingly, Lionel Messi is not part of this ranking. The Argentine changed clubs twice, and in both instances, he did so by simply signing the contract, meaning no club received money for his transfer.
Three of these signings were made by Barcelona, which was also the team that received the highest amount ever for a transfer when Neymar was sold. Another detail about the ranking is that the ten footballers on the list were all acquired during the past decade.
Here is the list.
The currently unmatched transfer record belongs to Brazilian Neymar, who was purchased by Paris Saint Germain from FC Barcelona in 2017 for €222 million. The forward, who started his career at Santos, played for the Parisian team until the 2022-23 season when he moved to Al Hilal.
Kylian Mbappe is second on the list. PSG, the same club that bought Neymar for €222 million, paid €180 million for the former Monaco forward. Initially, he arrived on loan with a mandatory purchase option. During the mid-2024 transfer window, the 2018 World Cup champion with the French national team moved to Real Madrid.
Barcelona replaced Neymar with the acquisition of Philippe Coutinho, for whom they paid €135 million to Liverpool. The Brazilian midfielder did not perform as expected in the Spanish team and scored fewer than 20 goals, leading to his loan to Bayern Munich in the 2019-20 season and to Aston Villa in 2022. Currently, Coutinho plays for Vasco da Gama in Brazil.
On August 25, 2017, Ousmane Dembélé transferred from Borussia Dortmund to FC Barcelona for €105 million, a sum that reached €135 million with bonuses. He played for the Spanish team for six seasons and scored only 24 goals. Currently, the French winger plays for Paris Saint Germain.
The English midfielder Jude Bellingham transferred from Borussia Dortmund to Real Madrid for an initial €103 million. However, at the end of the season, the Spanish team paid an additional €30 million to the German team for achieving certain objectives. One of these goals was winning the UEFA Champions League, which Bellingham accomplished by defeating his former team in the final.
João Félix transferred from Benfica to Atlético Madrid in 2019 for €127.2 million, becoming one of the most expensive signings. The truth is that the Portuguese player has struggled to secure a spot in the Colchonero team and is now being reconsidered by coach Diego Simeone after being loaned to Chelsea.
The €122 million paid by Arsenal is the highest amount an English club has ever paid for a signing. Rice joined the Gunners at the start of the 2023-24 season from West Ham, the club where he emerged and established himself as one of the best midfielders in Europe.
Enzo Fernández spent only a year at Benfica, during which the Argentine player won the FIFA World Cup in 2022. Chelsea focused on the former River Plate player and paid €121 million for his transfer.
Griezmann transferred from Atlético Madrid to FC Barcelona for €120 million in the 2019-20 season. The French forward played two seasons with the Catalan team and returned to Atlético Madrid in 2021, where he remains currently.
Pep Guardiola's team spent just under €120 million on winger Jack Grealish, who, at 25 years old, became the most expensive signing in Manchester City's history.
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