What Are the Most Expensive Football Transfers Ever?

By: Olena

Posted: April 7, 2020

Updated: April 7, 2020

We ranked the top-7 the most expensive transfers in football
All the high-cost deals were made between 2017-2019
Who is the most valuable player nowadays?

Top European clubs don’t mind spending a fancy price for getting the best players in the world. However, some of them surpassed themselves in attempts to hook these football stars. Here are the top-7 most expensive football transfers of all time and you will see plenty of familiar faces on the list. There were many high-cost transfers in football history, but none of them can surpass this magnificent seven. Interestingly, all the most expensive football transfers belong to the 21st century; to be more accurate - during the 2017-2019 transfer windows. We are going to rank all high-value players from the least expensive (if we can say so) to the most expensive ever.

The most expensive football transfers #7: Cristiano Ronaldo

Although Cristiano Ronaldo prefers leading any top, he is on the 7th position on the list of the most expensive football transfers. He left Spanish Real Madrid for Italian Juventus during the 2018/19 summer transfer window. The €117 million fee for the 35-years-old Portuguese player allowed Ronaldo to enter the top-7 of the most expensive transfers in football history. However, he managed to establish some kind of record here as he is the oldest player who was sold for such a high price. Moreover, the price that Juventus paid for Cristiano is the highest ever paid by an Italian club. Ronaldo’s contract with his new club is valid until 2022 and then he’s probably going to retire.

Most expensive football transfers #6: Antoine Griezmann

One of the latest transfers on the list was made during the 2019/20 football season. 29-years-old Antoine Griezmann changed his Atletico Madrid uniform to Barcelona’s blue and red. The top Spanish club paid €120 million for the French player, which became the 3rd most expensive Barca transfer in reject years. However, signing up Griezmann caused a big scandal last summer. The day when Griezmann’s joining Barcelona was announced, Atletico Madrid accused their rivals of breaking the transfer policy. Firstly, Catalans negotiated with their player during the ongoing season; secondly, they delayed the payment and reduced Antoinne’s €200 million worth to €120 million. This scandal gave a start to Griezmann's less successful performance in Barca than it was expected.

The most expensive football transfers #5: Ousmane Dembele

Another French player who recently joined FC Barcelona for a fancy price is Ousmane Dembele. A 22-years-old former Borussia Dortmund forward went to Catalans for €125 million in 2017. Unlike Griezmann, his transfer to the Spanish club was calmer and Dembele finished his first season with Catalans successfully as he subsequently won the double of La Liga and Copa Del Rey. Double wins are not a new thing for Barcelona. The club is among the best UEFA treble winners being the only FC that won three big competitions twice. Read the full list to learn more about the most successful clubs in Europe.

Most expensive football transfers #4: Joao Felix

The latest most high-worthy transfer was made between Benfica and Atletico Madrid. The Spanish club bought a 20-years-old Joao Felix from Portugal for €126 million. This is an impressive result for a player who started his senior career just 4 years ago. Felix signed his seven-year contract with Atletico Madrid during the 2019/20 summer transfer window and debuted for the Spanish club in a 1:0 winning match against Getafe, where he got a penalty for his new FC. The €126 million transfer of Felix became Benfica’s biggest one in history as well as the most expensive for Atletico Madrid. Moreover, he is the second highest-worth teenage player after the second-place holder, Kylian Mbappe.

The most expensive football transfers #3: Philippe Coutinho

The title of Barcelona’s most expensive signing up belongs to Philippe Coutinho. The 27-years-old former Liverpool attacking midfielder changed his club in January 2018 for €145 million. Like Griezmann, Coutinho’s transfer to the Spanish club wasn’t too successful. Firstly, got an injury just 3 weeks before signing up for Barcelona. This led to the delay of his debut for the club. Moreover, his overall performance in Barca wasn’t too good, so the FC decided to give him to Bayern Munich on a season-long loan. It seems like fortune abandoned Barcelona in recent years. Bet on Catalans to win or lose the next Champions League at 22Bet Sportsbook and follow our online sportsbook news in France to learn when the competition will be on again.

Most expensive football transfers #2: Kylian Mbappe

Here comes probably the most justified expensive transfer of the late 2010s. In the 2018/19 season, Paris Saint-Germain signed Kylian Mbappe for its major squad. The transfer of the 21-years-old French player from Monaco cost PSG €180 million, which made him the second-most expensive player and most expensive teenager ever. At the same time, Mbappe topped the list of the most expensive transfers ever made within a domestic league. And who can say that he’s not worth it? Since Mbappe’s debut for PSG, he has won a Ligue 1 title and the Coupe de France. Moreover, he has become the 7th highest-scoring player in the club after spending just 2 years with it. We believe that Kylian has all chances to take 1st place as the most expensive player ever, but now this title belongs to his teammate.

The most expensive football transfers #1: Neymar

Neymar Jr from PSG is the most expensive player ever bought by any football club. In 2017, Barcelona sold its forward to the French club for a record-high €222 million. This was the transfer of the year with a lot of discussions and debates. Many football fans were asking whether Neymar was worth this money. At that moment definitely yes, however, now he plays in Mbappe’s shadow. Will he become the best PSG player next year? Use 22Bet Sportsbook to bet on it and other football competitions in 2021.