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There's around £7billion worth of transfer spending in the top 100 transfers of all time, with the deals going as far back as 2001
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Transfer fees: they're massive, routinely running to figures far in excess of what you or I would have in our wallets on a day-to-day basis. The first £100m+ transfer didn't come until 2017, but we're now into double figures for deals of that magnitude. So exactly how much is a player really worth, anyway? One way to tell would be to look at the fees on previous transfer deals. .. And so, here's the 100 most spenny transfer of all time, starting with the most expensive footballer of all time and working down. The numbers are given in pounds sterling, based on exchange rates at the time where required, but are not adjusted for inflation Fee Player Age Nation From To Season Window £194. 51m Neymar 25 ? ? Barcelona Paris Saint-Germain 2017/18 Summer £159. 22m Kylian Mbappe 19 ? ? Monaco Paris Saint-Germain 2018/19 Summer £118. 29m Philippe Coutinho 25 ? ? Liverpool Barcelona 2017/18 Winter £118. 29m Ousmane Dembele 20 ? ? Borussia Dortmund Barcelona 2017/18 Summer £111. 53m Joao Felix 19 ? ? Benfica Atletico Madrid 2019/20 Summer £105. 92m Eden Hazard 28 ? ? Chelsea Real Madrid 2019/20 Summer £105. 22m Antoine Griezmann 28 ? ? Atletico Madrid Barcelona 2019/20 Summer £103. 49m Cristiano Ronaldo 33 ? ? Real Madrid Juventus 2018/19 Summer £103. 13m Enzo Fernandez 22 ? ? Benfica Chelsea 2022/23 Winter £101. 39m Declan Rice 24 ? ?? ?? ?? West Ham United Arsenal 2023/24 Summer £101. 01m Jack Grealish 25 ? ?? ?? ?? Aston Villa Manchester City 2021/22 Summer £100. 87m Moises Caicedo 21 ? ? Brighton & Hove Albion Chelsea 2023/24 Summer £98. 26m Jude Bellingham 20 ? ?? ?? ?? Borussia Dortmund Real Madrid 2023/24 Summer £97. 14m Romelu Lukaku 28 ? ? Inter Milan Chelsea 2021/22 Summer £85. 83m Paul Pogba 23 ? ? Juventus Manchester United 2016/17 Summer £85. 77m Gareth Bale 24 ? ?? ?? ?? Tottenham Real Madrid 2013/14 Summer £83. 68m Cristiano Ronaldo 24 ? ? Manchester United Real Madrid 2009/10 Summer £82. 61m Harry Kane 30 ? ?? ?? ?? Tottenham Bayern Munich 2023/24 Summer £82. 61m Randal Kolo Muani 24 ? ? Eintracht Frankfurt Paris Saint-Germain 2023/24 Summer £80. 97m Antony 22 ? ? Ajax Manchester United 2022/23 Summer £78. 26m Josko Gvardiol 21 ? ? RB Leipzig Manchester City 2023/24 Summer £78. 26m Neymar 31 ? ? Paris Saint-Germain Al-Hilal 2023/24 Summer £76. 28m Harry Maguire 26 ? ?? ?? ?? Leicester City Manchester United 2019/20 Summer £75. 49m Frenkie de Jong 22 ? ? Ajax Barcelona 2019/20 Summer £75. 00m Matthijs de Ligt 19 ? ? Ajax Juventus 2019/20 Summer £74. 73m Neymar 21 ? ? Santos Barcelona 2013/14 Summer £74. 21m Romelu Lukaku 24 ? ? Everton Manchester United 2017/18 Summer £74. 17m Virgil van Dijk 26 ? ? Southampton Liverpool 2017/18 Winter £73. 57m Gonzalo Higuain 28 ? ? Napoli Juventus 2016/17 Summer £73. 07m Jadon Sancho 21 ? ?? ?? ?? Borussia Dortmund Manchester United 2021/22 Summer £72. 45m Darwin Nunez 23 ? ? Benfica Liverpool 2022/23 Summer £71. 78m Dusan Vlahovic 22 ? ? Fiorentina Juventus 2021/22 Winter £71. 64m Arthur Melo 24 ? ? Barcelona Juventus 2020/21 Summer £71. 11m Kai Havertz 21 ? ? Bayer Leverkusen Chelsea 2020/21 Summer £70. 77m Kepa Arrizabalaga 23 ? ? Athletic Club Chelsea 2018/19 Summer £70. 15m Lucas Hernandez 23 ? ? Atletico Madrid Bayern Munich 2019/20 Summer £70. 15m Nicolas Pepe 24 ? ? Lille Arsenal 2019/20 Summer £70. 13m Victor Osimhen 21 ? ? Lille Napoli 2020/21 Summer £68. 53m Wesley Fofana 21 ? ? Leicester City Chelsea 2022/23 Summer £68. 19m Aurelien Tchouameni 22 ? ? Monaco Real Madrid 2022/23 Summer £67. 65m Rasmus Hojlund 20 ? ? Atalanta Manchester United 2023/24 Summer £65. 84m Luis Suarez 27 ? ? Liverpool Barcelona 2014/15 Summer £65. 22m Kai Havertz 24 ? ? Chelsea Arsenal 2023/24 Summer £65. 17m Jhon Duran 21 ? ? Aston Villa Al-Nassr 2024/25 Winter £64. 88m Romelu Lukaku 26 ? ? Manchester United Inter Milan 2019/20 Summer £63. 69m Thomas Lemar 22 ? ? Monaco Atletico Madrid 2018/19 Summer £63. 64m Ruben Dias 23 ? ? Benfica Manchester City 2020/21 Summer £63. 48m Julian Alvarez 24 ? ? Manchester City Atletico Madrid 2024/25 Summer £63. 48m Omar Marmoush 25 ? ? Eintracht Frankfurt Manchester City 2024/25 Winter £62. 80m Matheus Cunha 26 ? ? Wolverhampton Wanderers Manchester United 2025/26 Summer £61. 87m Zlatan Ibrahimovic 27 ? ? Inter Milan Barcelona 2009/10 Summer £61. 38m Rodri 23 ? ? Atletico Madrid Manchester City 2019/20 Summer £60. 87m Dominik Szoboszlai 22 ? ? RB Leipzig Liverpool 2023/24 Summer £60. 43m James Rodriguez 23 ? ? Monaco Real Madrid 2014/15 Summer £60. 43m Angel Di Maria 26 ? ? Real Madrid Manchester United 2014/15 Summer £60. 22m Casemiro 30 ? ? Real Madrid Manchester United 2022/23 Summer £59. 97m Riyad Mahrez 27 ? ? Leicester City Manchester City 2018/19 Summer £59. 67m Mykhaylo Mudryk 22 ? ? Shakhtar Donetsk Chelsea 2022/23 Winter £59. 67m Alexander Isak 22 ? ? Real Sociedad Newcastle United 2022/23 Summer £59. 65m Kaka 27 ? ? Milan Real Madrid 2009/10 Summer £59. 25m Khvicha Kvaratskhelia 23 ? ? Napoli Paris Saint-Germain 2024/25 Winter £58. 87m Mason Mount 24 ? ?? ?? ?? Chelsea Manchester United 2023/24 Summer £58. 45m Achraf Hakimi 22 ? ? Inter Milan Paris Saint-Germain 2021/22 Summer £57. 83m Alvaro Morata 24 ? ? Real Madrid Chelsea 2017/18 Summer £57. 11m Matthijs de Ligt 22 ? ? Juventus Bayern Munich 2022/23 Summer £56. 99m Bruno Fernandes 25 ? ? Sporting Manchester United 2019/20 Winter £56. 99m Joao Cancelo 25 ? ? Juventus Manchester City 2019/20 Summer £56. 95m Aymeric Laporte 23 ? ? Athletic Club Manchester City 2017/18 Winter £56. 61m Christian Pulisic 20 ? ? Borussia Dortmund Chelsea 2018/19 Winter £56. 52m Goncalo Ramos 22 ? ? Benfica Paris Saint-Germain 2023/24 Winter £55. 86m Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang 28 ? ? Borussia Dortmund Arsenal 2017/18 Winter £55. 66m Marc Cucurella 24 ? ? Brighton & Hove Albion Chelsea 2022/23 Summer £55. 28m Alisson 25 ? ? AS Roma Liverpool 2018/19 Summer £55. 24m Luka Jovic 21 ? ? Eintracht Frankfurt Real Madrid 2019/20 Summer £55. 14m Kevin De Bruyne 24 ? ? Wolfsburg Manchester City 2015/16 Summer £54. 77m Edinson Cavani 26 ? ? Napoli Paris Saint-Germain 2013/14 Summer £54. 42m Dominic Solanke 26 ? ?? ?? ?? Bournemouth Tottenham 2024/25 Summer £54. 36m Tanguy Ndombele 22 ? ? Lyon Tottenham 2019/20 Summer £54. 00m Romeo Lavia 19 ? ? Southampton Chelsea 2023/24 Summer £53. 91m Matheus Nunes 25 ? ? Wolverhampton Wanderers Manchester City 2023/24 Summer £53. 33m Miralem Pjanic 30 ? ? Juventus Barcelona 2020/21 Summer £53. 07m Naby Keita 23 ? ? RB Leipzig Liverpool 2018/19 Summer £52. 57m Diego Costa 29 ? ? Chelsea Atletico Madrid 2017/18 Winter £52. 47m Leny Yoro 18 ? ? Lille Manchester United 2024/25 Summer £52. 17m Christopher Nkunku 25 ? ? RB Leipzig Chelsea 2023/24 Summer £52. 17m Manuel Ugarte 22 ? ? Sporting Paris Saint-Germain 2023/24 Summer £52. 17m Otavio 28 ? ? Porto Al-Nassr 2023/24 Summer £52. 17m Malcom 26 ? ? Zenit Saint-Petersburg Al-Hilal 2023/24 Summer £52. 17m Jeremy Doku 21 ? ? Stade Rennais Manchester City 2023/24 Summer £51. 14m Erling Haaland 21 ? ? Borussia Dortmund Manchester City 2022/23 Summer £50. 78m Moussa Diaby 25 ? ? Aston Villa Al-Ittihad 2024/25 Summer £50. 78m Pedro Neto 24 ? ? Wolverhampton Wanderers Chelsea 2024/25 Summer £50. 78m Nico Gonzalez 23 ? ? Porto Manchester City 2024/25 Winter £50. 71m Joao Neves 19 ? ? Benfica Paris Saint-Germain 2024/25 Summer £49. 05m Oscar 25 ? ? Chelsea SH SIPG 2016/17 Winter £48. 18m Zinedine Zidane 29 ? ? Juventus Real Madrid 2001/02 Summer £46. 22m Raheem Sterling 20 ? ?? ?? ?? Liverpool Manchester City 2015/16 Summer £45. 71m Angel Di Maria 27 ? ? Manchester United Paris Saint-Germain 2015/16 Summer £43. 53m Anthony Martial 19 ? ? Monaco Manchester United 2015/16 Summer £43. 48m Kim Min-jae 27 ? ? Napoli Bayern Munich 2023/24 Summer The biggest move, naturally, is Neymar's £194. 5m move from Barcelona to PSG in 2017. The scale of that fee also qualifies that move as one of the most shocking transfers ever, alongside a transfer that doesn't quite make the list: Luis Figo's stunning move from Barcelona to Real Madrid in summer 2000. That means Zinedine Zidane's switch to Real the following year is the oldest transfer still in the top 100 - though that's likely to be bumped out sooner rather than later, at which point it will be Cristiano Ronaldo's move from Manchester United to (you guessed it) Real Madrid in 2009. Arsenal's acquisition of Declan Rice in 2023 makes him the most expensive English player of all time, just pipping Jack Grealish's move from Aston Villa to Manchester City two years earlier. The best features, fun and footballing quizzes, straight to your inbox every week. Philippe Coutinho remains the most expensive Premier League player of all time following his move from Liverpool to Barcelona in January 2018. At time of writing this looks like it could soon by gazumped by Liverpool's club-record transfer bid for Florian Wirtz, but Enzo Fernandez is currently the most expensively-acquired by a Premier League club, when he moved from Benfica to Chelsea in 2023 Benfica have been the biggest beneficiaries overall from the top 100 transfers, incidentally. The Portuguese side have been the selling club in six of the 100 deals, the joint-most alongside Borussia Dortmund, but have made about £4. 7m more than the German side. Benfica are also the only club to date to have sold two players for £100m+ (Joao Felix to Atletico Madrid being the other). Manchester City have the most entries in the top 100 (14), just ahead of Chelsea and Manchester United (13 each) - though Chelsea have just about spent the most of anybody on top 100 players, at £898. 3m. PSG (£813. 9m) are the only other club to even come close to that Premier League trio for spending and have ten entries in the list. Real Madrid have nine, Barcelona eight. Ready for some more trivia? Lovely. Nicolas Pepe is the most expensive African player of all time, although that is much to his chagrin. .. and to Arsenal's. South Korean international Kim Min-Jae is the most expensive Asian player of all time: he moved from Napoli to Bayern Munich for €50m in 2023. North America has just one representative in the top 100 transfers list, meanwhile, via USA international Christian Pulisic's move from Borussia Dortmund to Chelsea in 2019. Over half of the top 100 transfers have been moves for players aged 21 to 25. Leny Yoro is the youngest entrant: he was 18 when he left Lille to join Manchester United last year. Cristiano Ronaldo is the oldest, meanwhile, joining Juventus from Real Madrid for £103. 5m in 2018, when he was 33. Steven Chicken has been working as a football writer since 2009, taking in stints with Football365 and the Huddersfield Examiner. Steven still covers Huddersfield Town home and away for his own publication, We Are Terriers. com. Steven is a two-time nominee for Regional Journalist of the Year at the prestigious British Sports Journalism Awards, making the shortlist in 2020 and 2023. Please logout and then login again, you will then be prompted to enter your display name.
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