Most expensive footballers of all time: Morgan Rogers, Neymar, Kylian Mbappe

Transfers have become one of the most anticipated and widely discussed aspects of modern football, with major deals often generating as much excitement and debate as the action on the pitch itself.

As clubs continue to strengthen their squads in pursuit of trophies, European qualification or simply top-flight survival, spending heavily in the transfer market has become a crucial part of building a successful team.

This has seen transfer fees rise dramatically over the years, reflecting the growing financial power of football alongside the increasing pressure on clubs to compete at the highest level.

While some record-breaking deals have failed to deliver the expected results, every major transfer has played a role in shaping the modern game and redefining the financial landscape of football.

The summer of 2026 brought another historic addition to the transfer market records, with Morgan Rogers becoming the most expensive English player of all time when he completed his £117m move from Aston Villa to Chelsea.

With that in mind, Sports Mole presents the list of the 11 most expensive footballers of all time.

10. Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen to Liverpool, £106.3m)

© Imago / Every Second Media

Florian Wirtz was one of the most highly sought-after attacking midfielders in world football before completing his move to Liverpool in July 2025, with the Reds beating competition from clubs including Bayern Munich and Manchester City to secure the German's signature.

However, Wirtz endured a difficult first season in the Premier League, scoring just seven goals in 49 appearances across all competitions as he adapted to the demands of English football.

Liverpool entered a new era after Arne Slot was sacked following the conclusion of the 2025-26 campaign, with former Bournemouth manager Andoni Iraola appointed as the club's new head coach.

With Liverpool's pre-season preparations about to begin, Wirtz will be eager to make a strong impression under the new manager and show why the Reds invested such a significant fee to bring him to Anfield.

9. Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund to Real Madrid, £108m)

© Imago / Guillermo Martinez

On 14 June 2023, Real Madrid completed the signing of England midfielder Jude Bellingham from Borussia Dortmund on a six-year deal, with the move initially making him the club's second-most expensive signing.

At the time, Eden Hazard remained Real Madrid's record arrival, but the various add-ons included in Bellingham's deal have since been achieved, allowing the former Birmingham City midfielder to surpass the Belgian winger's transfer fee.

Bellingham has already made more appearances for Real Madrid than he did for any of his previous clubs, with the Stourbridge-born midfielder scoring 46 goals in 140 appearances across all competitions.

The midfielder will rejoin his Madrid teammates under new manager Jose Mourinho after enjoying a personally successful World Cup campaign with England, scoring seven goals in eight matches as the Three Lions fell short in the semi-finals against Argentina.

He became just the sixth English player to represent Los Blancos and has since been joined at the club by the seventh, Trent Alexander-Arnold.

8. Joao Felix (Benfica to Aletico Madrid, £108.2m)

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Felix was one of the most talented young players in world football at the time of his move to Atletico Madrid, having scored 20 goals and provided eight assists in 42 appearances during his debut campaign for Benfica in 2018-19.

However, the Portuguese forward was unable to consistently showcase his potential at Atletico Madrid, often finding himself in and out of the team due to inconsistent form.

Felix scored 25 goals in 96 LaLiga appearances under Diego Simeone before joining Chelsea on loan in 2023, with the move later becoming permanent following a season-long loan spell at Barcelona.

Similar to his time at Atletico Madrid, Felix struggled to make an impact at Stamford Bridge, scoring just one goal in 12 Premier League appearances after joining on a permanent basis.

Further loan spells followed, including a stint at AC Milan where he featured in 15 Serie A matches, before Felix eventually moved to Al-Nassr.

Although he has performed well in Saudi Arabia, he has never managed to reach the level expected when he was regarded as one of football's brightest young talents.

7. Philippe Coutinho (Liverpool to Barcelona, £114.8m)

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After several high-quality years at Liverpool, Coutinho earned his dream move to Barcelona in January 2018, but the Brazilian was unable to cement his place as a regular starter during his time in Spain.

During his spell at Camp Nou, Coutinho made just 76 LaLiga appearances, with the majority coming from the bench, as the once world-class forward scored only 17 league goals.

Coutinho's best period after leaving Liverpool came during a loan spell from Barcelona at Bayern Munich in the 2019-20 season, where he scored 11 goals and provided nine assists while lifting the Champions League trophy with the German giants.

The attacking midfielder later joined Aston Villa on loan before the move was made permanent, but his time at Villa Park was disrupted by inconsistent form and injuries.

Ahead of the 2023-24 season, Coutinho joined Al-Duhail on loan, where he made just 16 appearances for the Qatari side before returning to Brazil.

He later rejoined boyhood club Vasco da Gama on loan, with the move eventually becoming permanent.

During his second spell at the club, Coutinho scored 17 goals in 81 appearances across all competitions.

However, he eventually left Vasco da Gama, citing pressure from supporters and mental exhaustion, and the Brazilian is currently without a club at the age of 34.

6. Elliot Anderson (Nottingham Forest to Manchester City, £115m)

© Imago / News Images

Elliot Anderson's move to Manchester City was announced during the World Cup, with the midfielder moving from Nottingham Forest to the Citizens in a deal that made him the most expensive British player in football history, for now at least.

Anderson came through the academy at Newcastle United, where he made 44 Premier League appearances for the Magpies, with 43 of those coming after a loan spell at Bristol Rovers, before completing a move to Nottingham Forest at the start of the 2024-25 season.

The English midfielder spent two seasons at the City Ground, making 92 appearances and scoring six goals before his record-breaking transfer was completed.

In 1979, it was Forest who broke the British transfer record when they signed Trevor Francis from Birmingham City.

Now, they will receive the highest fee ever paid for a British player following Anderson's move to Manchester City, which was finalised after his World Cup involvement came to an end.

His move to Enzo Maresca's side surpassed the £105m Arsenal paid for Declan Rice three years earlier, although it did not remain the British record for long.

5. Morgan Rogers (Aston Villa to Chelsea, £117.7m)

© Imago / Goal Sports Images

Swiftly overtaking Anderson in the list of the most expensive British players of all time, Morgan Rogers ended up on a different side of London than many expected during the 2026 summer transfer window.

The former Man City youngster was heavily linked with a big-money switch to Arsenal, although negotiations never really got off the ground between Aston Villa and the Gunners, thanks in no small part to a mammoth price tag.

However, Chelsea had no inhibitions about paying such a fee, coughing up an absurd £117m to bring Rogers to Stamford Bridge and set a new record for the highest transfer fee paid for a British player.

4. Alexander Isak (Newcastle United to Liverpool, £123m)

© Iconsport / PA Images

 

The forward made it clear at the start of the window that he wanted to leave St James' Park in the hope of winning more silverware, with Newcastle reluctantly accepting the huge offer on September 1, 2025, after initially resisting his departure.

However, Isak endured a difficult first season at Anfield after becoming the Premier League's most expensive player, scoring just three league goals in 14 appearances as he struggled to make the desired impact at his new club.

His debut campaign was heavily disrupted by injuries, however, with the striker suffering a severe fractured ankle and fibula in December before Liverpool opted against risking him whenever he experienced minor fitness concerns later in the season.

Despite his struggles at club level, Isak showed signs of returning to form during the 2026 World Cup, where he was involved in four goals across five appearances for Sweden, offering encouragement to Liverpool supporters ahead of the new campaign.

He now returns from international duty as part of Andoni Iraola's pre-season plans and will be eager to put his difficult debut season behind him by making a strong start at Anfield.

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3. Ousmane Dembele (Borussia Dortmund to Barcelona, £125m)

© Imago / IMAGO / Crystal Pix

Ousmane Dembele quickly emerged as one of the most exciting young talents in world football after a breakthrough season with Rennes in 2015-16, scoring 12 goals and providing five assists in 29 appearances across all competitions.

His impressive performances earned him a move to Borussia Dortmund, where he spent just one season before Barcelona secured his signature in a deal worth £125m.

However, like several players on this list, Dembele's time at Camp Nou was disrupted by persistent injury problems, inconsistent form and reports of attitude issues, preventing him from reaching the level expected after such a significant transfer.

Although he made 185 appearances for Barcelona, Dembele scored only 40 goals during his spell in Spain and was widely regarded as a major financial and sporting disappointment due to his failure to justify his huge price tag.

Since leaving Barcelona, the French forward has enjoyed a remarkable resurgence at Paris Saint-Germain, where he has scored 61 goals in 134 appearances while winning successive Champions League titles.

His finest individual campaign came during the 2024-25 season, when Dembele claimed the 2025 Ballon d'Or after playing a key role in a historic treble-winning campaign, scoring 35 goals and registering 14 assists across all competitions.

A regular feature in France's star-studded attack, Dembele was unable to claim a second World Cup winners' medal after Didier Deschamps' side were eliminated in the semi-finals by eventual champions Spain.

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2. Kylian Mbappe (AS Monaco to Paris Saint-Germain, £153.5m)

© Iconsport / Newspix

A sensational breakout campaign for AS Monaco during the 2016-17 season, where Mbappe scored 26 goals and provided eight assists in 44 appearances across all competitions, earned him a major move to Paris Saint-Germain, initially on loan before the transfer was made permanent for £153.5m in July 2018.

The Frenchman quickly established himself as one of the best players in world football during his time in the French capital, scoring 256 goals and providing 96 assists in 308 appearances for PSG before eventually completing his long-awaited move to Real Madrid in the summer of 2024.

Since arriving at the Santiago Bernabeu, Mbappe has continued to produce at an elite level, scoring 56 LaLiga goals in just 65 appearances while remaining one of the key figures in France's golden generation.

The former Monaco forward has been part of the star-studded France attack that has reached the latter stages of three consecutive World Cups, lifting the trophy in 2018 before suffering defeat in the 2022 final and falling short in the 2026 semi-finals.

Mbappe has scored 66 goals in 106 appearances for his country and claimed the 2026 World Cup Golden Boot after scoring 10 times in eight matches.

His latest tournament haul took his overall World Cup tally to an extraordinary 22 goals in 22 appearances, making him the competition's all-time leading goalscorer.

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1. Neymar (Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain, £189.3m)

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Neymar's move from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain shattered the previous transfer record, with the French giants paying a staggering £189.3m to secure the Brazilian's services in the summer of 2017.

While Neymar continued to showcase his world-class ability in France, his time at PSG was heavily affected by injuries, with the forward never making more than 31 appearances in a single season. Despite his individual brilliance, he ultimately fell short of delivering the Champions League trophy that the club had signed him to help secure.

PSG have since gone on to win successive Champions League titles without Neymar, while his move to Al Hilal proved to be another frustrating spell. The Brazilian made just three league appearances across two seasons in Saudi Arabia before his contract was terminated, allowing him to return to boyhood club Santos just days later.

Injuries have continued to impact Neymar since his return to Brazil, although he has already featured far more regularly than during his time in Saudi Arabia.

A return of 17 goals in 43 appearances was enough to earn him a place in Brazil's 2026 World Cup squad, but fitness problems once again disrupted his tournament, with Neymar missing several matches and scoring just once in two appearances.

Almost nine years on from his record-breaking move, Neymar's transfer remains comfortably ahead of the competition and is likely to remain the highest fee in football history for years to come, with no subsequent deal coming close to matching the astronomical figure paid by PSG.

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Football rankings and record lists

• Richest footballers in the world
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