Football has evolved economically. The prices we used to hear 10 years ago will now amuse everyone. In 2009, Cristiano Ronaldo’s transfer to Real Madrid broke a record, but since then, we have seen a value surge.
The turning point came in 2017 when Neymar made his historic move from Barcelona to PSG for an eye-watering €222 million – a record that still stands today. Since then, other massive signings have followed. In this article, we’ll take a look at the 10 most expensive transfers in football history, based on data from Transfermarkt.
As mentioned above, the Portuguese superstar broke the record fee for a football transfer in 2009. However, he also came under the spotlight in 2018. After leaving Real Madrid, Ronaldo joined Juventus for €117 million.
This could be considered a large amount, considering that Cristiano was already 33 by that time. Nevertheless, he was one of the best players for Juve, scoring regularly in Serie A. Ronaldo also led the club to a memorable comeback against Atletico in 2019, delivering a hattrick in the second leg of the Champions League.
The most expensive transfer for an English player is still untouchable. Jack Grealish moved to Man City from Aston Villa for €117.5 million. At first, it seemed that Gralish would not be able to adapt to Pep Guradiola’s system, but over time, those concerns were laid to rest.
Grealish was instrumental in the 2022/23 season, when City won the Champions League. Despite reduced playing time in 2023/24, Guardiola still sees him as a valuable member of the squad.
After selling Neymar, Barcelona started a series of expensive signings and eventually, it led to huge financial problems for the club. One of those signings was Antoine Griezmann, who joined from Atletico Madrid in 2019 for €120 million.
The transfer was a failure. Griezmann spent three seasons in Barcelona, scoring 35 times in 102 appearances, but never fully settled. Ultimately, he left the club and returned to Atletico.
After winning the Europa League with Chelsea, Eden Hazard moved to Real Madrid for a €120.8 million fee. At 28, he was expected to be a key player for the Spanish giants. However, he struggled with injuries and failed to gain a foothold at the club.
Unfortunately, injuries plagued his time at Madrid, and he struggled to replicate his Chelsea form. Hazard’s quality noticeably declined, and by 2023, he decided to retire from football.
Enzo Fernandez made a high-profile move from Benfica to Chelsea for €121 million. The Argentine player was one of the key signings that Todd Boehly carried out. Fernández initially faced some adaptation challenges but has now found his rhythm at the club.
The 2022 World Cup champion is known for his intelligence and quick decision-making. Although he has shown flashes of brilliance, there is still significant potential for further growth.
João Félix impressed everyone with his skills at Benfica. European giants had an eye on the young Portuguese starlet, but it was Atletico who surpassed everyone and signed him for €127.2 million in 2019.
Félix came as a replacement for Antoine Griezmann, but he failed to live up to expectations. He was then loaned to Chelsea and Barcelona and in 2024 moved permanently to the Blues.
Ousmane Dembélé’s signing in 2017 (€135.00 million) was an “answer” to Neymar’s departure. The French player was a key star in Dortmund and immediately attracted top clubs’ attention.
Frequent injuries marred Dembélé’s time at Barcelona, though he showed improvement under Xavi and became a key figure in the team. Nevertheless, PSG bought him in 2023 and his time at Barcelona is often viewed as another costly transfer that didn’t fully meet expectations.
You will notice that Barcelona are mentioned several times on this list. The club have made plenty of unexplained signings, eventually contributing to the club’s financial difficulties.
Philippe Coutinho is one of Barca’s biggest transfer failures. In 2018, he was bought for €135 million from Liverpool. The management wanted to replace Andres Iniesta with the Brazilian, but neither Ernesto Valverde nor Ronald Koeman could integrate him into the playing system.
Eventually, he had stints with Bayern and Aston Villa. The latter loaned him to the Brazilian side Vasco da Gama.
Kylian Mbappé quickly conquered the football world when he first appeared in 2017. The French winger then shone at the 2018 World Cup, and PSG decided to acquire him on a permanent deal for €180 million in 2018.
Mbappé was the undisputable leader of the club and had one of the biggest contracts. However, the saga associated with Real Madrid has finally ended, and in 2024, he signed for Los Blancos on a free transfer.
We have reached first place. Neymar’s record-breaking €222 million transfer to PSG in 2017 is still the record. He moved to the French club to escape the shadow of Lionel Messi but did not achieve any notable success.
At PSG, he was frequently injured and missed the majority of important matches. Eventually, the Brazilian striker left France for Saudi Arabian giants Al-Hilal in 2023 and missed the majority of the season due to a torn anterior cruciate ligament (ACL).
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