Neymar’s move to PSG last summer smashed all records before it, but what are some of the other biggest transfers to have happened? ESPN FC takes a look at the top 10.
All fees provided by ESPN Stats Information
1. Neymar – Barcelona to PSG – £198m – 2017
It is barely a believable fee but Neymar more than doubled the world record when he moved to PSG from Barcelona. Easily the world’s biggest football transfer of all-time and, when you factor in wages and bonuses, it comes in at around half a billion U.S. dollars.
2. Kylian Mbappe – Monaco to PSG – £160m – 2018
The France teenager burst onto the scene with Monaco and, after one incredible season, PSG agreed a year-long loan deal which became permanent for a fee of €180m on July 1. Still only 19, Mbappe is arguably the world’s best player under the age of 21.
3. Philippe Coutinho – Liverpool to Barcelona – £105m – 2018
After starring for Liverpool, Coutinho made it clear that he wanted a move to Camp Nou and eventually got it. The deal could reach as much as £142m with add-ons.
4. Ousmane Dembele – Dortmund to Barcelona – £96.8m – 2017
Dembele’s fee has add-ons which could see the fee rise by 40 percent — taking the deal to a potential €147m. Incredible given the teenager was snapped up for a tiny fee from Rennes only a year earlier.
5. Paul Pogba – Juventus to Manchester United – £89.3m – 2016
Man United paid a new world record to land the France midfielder from Juventus but it didn’t last very long as Neymar’s deal eclipsed all before it. Not a bad investment given Juve signed him for around £500,000 from United in 2012.
6. Cristiano Ronaldo – Real Madrid to Juventus – £88m – 2018
Only Ronaldo, and possibly Messi if he ever leaves Barcelona, could command a €100m fee with only a few years of his career left. One of the greatest of all time shocked the world when he chose to leave Real Madrid and settle in Turin.
7. Gareth Bale – Tottenham to Real Madrid – £85.3m – 2013
Bale’s record lasted all of three years as he was sold from Tottenham to the same club who already held the record.
8. Cristiano Ronaldo – Man United to Real Madrid – £80m – 2009
One of the world’s greatest ever players was a massive coup for Real Madrid nine years ago, but his transfer fee seems small by comparison now.
9. Gonzalo Higuain – Napoli to Juventus – £75.3m – 2016
Higuain was linked to a host of top clubs in Europe and eventually signed for the Serie A champions, which annoyed Napoli quite significantly.
10=. Romelu Lukaku – Everton to Manchester United – £75m – 2017
Jose Mourinho sold Lukaku when he was at Chelsea but chose to bring the Everton striker in last summer.
10=. Luis Suarez – Liverpool to Barcelona – £75m – 2014
After a summer where he landed a nine-match ban for biting Giorgio Chiellini at the World Cup, Suarez moved to Spain to join up with Barcelona.
10=. Virgil van Dijk – Southampton to Liverpool – £75m – 2018
The world’s most expensive defender figures on this list, with Liverpool splashing some serious cash after the sale of Coutinho.
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