The 100 most expensive football transfers of all time
The transfer windows remain one of the highlights of the footballing seasons for fans and there have been plenty of big-money deals over the years.
Paris Saint-Germain shook up the football world in the summer of 2017 when they signed Neymar from Barcelona and then promptly prised Kylian Mbappe away from Monaco. They remain the two most expensive players of all time but there is no denying that PSG's sensational double swoop greatly inflated the transfer market.
Indeed, a number of massive moves quickly followed, with Barcelona looking to try to fill the void left behind by Neymar by signing the likes of Ousmane Dembele, Philippe Coutinho and Antoine Griezmann for nine-figure fees. Also in Spain, Atletico Madrid splashed €126m on Benfica's prodigious attacking talent Joao Felix, while Real Madrid finally brought Eden Hazard to Santiago Bernabeu for €100m.
The Covid-19 pandemic briefly had a massive impact on the transfer market, but within a couple of seasons a number of clubs had recovered, particularly in England. Numerous players have been signed by Premier League clubs for huge money since 2021, including Declan Rice, Enzo Fernandez, Jack Grealish, Jadon Sancho, Mykhailo Mudryk, Antony, Darwin Nunez and Moises Caicedo.
Meanwhile, European giants such as Real Madrid have flexed their muscles with the high-profile signings of players like Jude Bellingham and Aurelien Tchouameni, while the usually prudent Bayern Munich have also got in on the act by acquiring Harry Kane.
Furthermore, a new power has now emerged in the Middle East, with Saudi Pro League clubs having shaken up the transfer market in 2023 by signing the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Neymar.
Julian Alvarez entered the top 100 list following his move to Atletico Madrid in the summer of 2024.
So, could the current transfer record soon be broken? It certainly seems possible. For now, though, Neymar remains top of the list of the 100 most expensive players of all time...
Pos.
Player
Clubs
Year
Fee
1
Neymar
Barcelona - PSG
2017
€222m
2
Kylian Mbappe
Monaco - PSG
2017
€145m (+€35m)
3
Joao Felix
Benfica - Atletico Madrid
2019
€126m
4
Enzo Fernandez
Benfica - Chelsea
2023
€121m
=5
Philippe Coutinho
Liverpool - Barcelona
2018
€120m (+€40m)
=5
Antoine Griezmann
Atletico Madrid - Barcelona
2019
€120m
=7
Moises Caicedo
Brighton - Chelsea
2023
€117m (+€17.5m)
=7
Declan Rice
West Ham - Arsenal
2023
€117m (+€6m)
=7
Jack Grealish
Aston Villa - Manchester City
2021
€117m
10
Romelu Lukaku
Inter - Chelsea
2021
€115m
=11
Ousmane Dembele
Borussia Dortmund - Barcelona
2017
€105m (+€40m)
=11
Paul Pogba
Juventus - Manchester United
2016
€105m (+€5m)
13
Jude Bellingham
Dortmund - Real Madrid
2023
€103m (+€31m)
14
Gareth Bale
Tottenham - Real Madrid
2013
€100.8m
=15
Eden Hazard
Chelsea - Real Madrid
2019
€100m (+€46m)
=15
Harry Kane
Tottenham - Bayern Munich
2023
€100m (+€16m)
=15
Cristiano Ronaldo
Real Madrid - Juventus
2018
€100m
18
Antony
Ajax - Manchester United
2022
€95m (+€5m)
=19
Harry Maguire
Leicester City - Manchester United
2019
€94m
=19
Cristiano Ronaldo
Manchester United - Real Madrid
2009
€94m
=21
Gonzalo Higuain
Napoli - Juventus
2016
€90m
=21
Neymar
PSG - Al-Hilal
2023
€90m
=21
Josko Gvardiol
RB Leipzig - Manchester City
2023
€90m
24
Romelu Lukaku
Everton - Manchester United
2017
€88m (+€17.5m)
25
Neymar
Santos - Barcelona
2013
€86.2m
26
Jadon Sancho
Borussia Dortmund - Manchester United
2021
€85m
27
Virgil van Dijk
Southampton - Liverpool
2018
€84.5m
28
Luis Suarez
Liverpool - Barcelona
2014
€82m
29
Wesley Fofana
Leicester City - Chelsea
2022
€80.5m (+€6m)
=30
Aurelien Tchouameni
Monaco - Real Madrid
2022
€80m (+€20m)
=30
James Rodriguez
Monaco - Real Madrid
2014
€80m
=32
Kepa Arrizabalaga
Athletic Club - Chelsea
2018
€80m
=33
Lucas Hernandez
Atletico Madrid - Bayern Munich
2019
€80m
=33
Romelu Lukaku
Manchester United - Inter
2019
€80m
35
Nicolas Pepe
Lille - Arsenal
2019
€79m
36
Alvaro Morata
Real Madrid - Chelsea
2017
€78.9m
37
Zinedine Zidane
Juventus - Real Madrid
2001
€77.5m
=38
Darwin Nunez
Benfica - Liverpool
2022
€75m (+€25m)
=38
Julian Alvarez
Manchester City - Atletico Madrid
2024
€75m (+€20m)
=38
Randal Kolo Muani
Eintracht Frankfurt - PSG
2023
€75m (+€15m)
=38
Matthijs de Ligt
Ajax - Juventus
2019
€75m (+€10.5m)
=38
Rasmus Hojlund
Atalanta - Manchester United
2023
€75m (+€9m)
=38
Kevin De Bruyne
Wolfsburg - Manchester City
2015
€75m
=38
Frenkie de Jong
Ajax - Barcelona
2019
€75m
=38
Dusan Vlahovic
Fiorentina - Juventus
2022
€75m
46
Angel Di Maria
Real Madrid - Manchester United
2014
€74.6m
47
Alisson Becker
Roma - Liverpool
2018
€73m
48
Arthur Melo
Barcelona - Juventus
2020
€72m (+€10m)
49
Kai Havertz
Chelsea-Arsenal
2023
€72m (+€3.5m)
50
Casemiro
Real Madrid - Manchester United
2022
€71m (+€11.8m)
=51
Mykhailo Mudryk
Shakhtar Donetsk - Chelsea
2023
€70m (+€30m)
=51
Kai Havertz
Bayer Leverkusen - Chelsea
2020
€70m (+€9m)
=51
Luka Jovic
Eintracht Frankfurt - Real Madrid
2019
€70m
=51
Rodri
Atletico Madrid - Manchester City
2019
€70m
=51
Sandro Tonali
AC Milan - Newcastle United
2023
€70m
=51
Dominik Szoboszlai
RB Leipzig - Liverpool
2023
€70m
57
Zlatan Ibrahimovic
Inter - Barcelona
2009
€69.5m
58
Raheem Sterling
Liverpool - Manchester City
2015
€69.1m
59
Ruben Dias
Benfica - Manchester City
2020
€68m (+€3.6m)
60
Riyad Mahrez
Leicester City - Manchester City
2019
€67.8m
61
Matthijs de Ligt
Juventus - Bayern Munich
2022
€67m (+€10m)
62
Diego Costa
Chelsea - Atletico Madrid
2018
€66m
63
Marc Cucurella
Brighton - Chelsea
2022
€65.1m (+€8.2m)
=64
Alexander Isak
Real Sociedad - Newcastle United
2022
€65m (+€5m)
=64
Thomas Lemar
Monaco - Atletico Madrid
2018
€65m
=64
Jeremy Doku
Rennes - Manchester City
2023
€65m
=64
Kaka
AC Milan - Real Madrid
2009
€65m
=64
Aymeric Laporte
Athletic Club - Manchester City
2018
€65m
=64
Joao Cancelo
Juventus - Manchester City
2019
€65m (inc. Danilo)
70
Edinson Cavani
Napoli - PSG
2013
€64.5m
71
Christian Pulisic
Borussia Dortmund - Chelsea
2019
€64m
72
Mason Mount
Chelsea - Manchester United
2023
€63.9m (+€5.8m)
73
Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang
Borussia Dortmund - Arsenal
2018
€63.75m
=74
David Luiz
Chelsea - PSG
2014
€62m (+€6m)
=74
Romeo Lavia
Southampton - Chelsea
2023
€62m (+€6m)
=74
Matheus Nunes
Wolves - Manchester City
2023
€62m
77
Angel Di Maria
Manchester United - PSG
2015
€61.6m
=78
Achraf Hakimi
Inter - PSG
2021
€60m (+€11m)
=78
Miralem Pjanic
Juventus - Barcelona
2020
€60m (+€5m)
=78
Oscar
Chelsea - Shanghai SIPG
2017
€60m
=78
Christopher Nkunku
RB Leipzig - Chelsea
2023
€60m
=78
Manuel Ugarte
Sporting CP - PSG
2023
€60m
=78
Erling Haaland
Borussia Dortmund - Manchester City
2022
€60m
=78
Naby Keita
RB Leipzig - Liverpool
2018
€60m
=78
Luis Figo
Barcelona - Real Madrid
2000
€60m
=78
Tanguy Ndombele
Lyon - Tottenham
2019
€60m
=78
Malcom
Zenit - Al-Hilal
2023
€60m
=78
Otavio
Porto - Al-Nassr
2023
€60m
89
Raphinha
Leeds United - Barcelona
2022
€59m (+€6m)
90
Fernando Torres
Liverpool - Chelsea
2011
€59m
=91
Fred
Shakhtar Donetsk - Manchester United
2018
€58.9m
=91
Jorginho
Napoli - Chelsea
2018
€58.9m
=93
Hulk
Zenit - Shanghai SIPG
2016
€58.6m
=93
Ben White
Brighton - Arsenal
2021
€58.6m
95
Benjamin Mendy
Monaco - Manchester City
2017
€58.2m
=96
Richarlison
Everton - Tottenham
2022
€58m (+€12m)
=96
John Stones
Everton - Manchester City
2016
€58m
98
Kyle Walker
Tottenham - Manchester City
2017
€56.7m
99
Raheem Sterling
Manchester City - Chelsea
2022
€56.2m
100
Ben Chilwell
Leicester City - Chelsea
2020
€55.8m
