What's the most expensive transfer ever?
It seems obvious: Paris Saint-Germain paid the €222 million release clause to acquire Neymar from Barcelona. The only other player who has come close to that was another player acquired by PSG the same year: Kylian Mbappé, for €180 million, from Monaco. No one else has moved for even €150 million.
But €50 million in 2025 is a lot different from €100 million in 2015, and money spent by PSG is a lot different from money spent by, say, Marseille or Mallorca. In an era where nearly every league and UEFA have spending rules pegged to a certain percentage of team revenue, perhaps there's a better way to compare transfer spending -- across teams and across eras.
If we look at Neymar's transfer as a percentage of PSG's revenue for the 2017-18 season, then it accounts for 40% of it. That seems like a lot -- and it is. Clubs tend to pay somewhere between 15% and 20% of their revenue for their most expensive signings. Neymar, of course, was double that.
But that's not as much as Real Madrid paid for Zinedine Zidane in 2001. Kicking the Galacticos era into full swing, Madrid broke the transfer fee record to acquire a 29-year-old (!) Zidane for €77.5 million -- or 51% of their revenue.
And that's not as much as Real Betis paid to acquire Denilson three years prior. Their €30 million move for the 20-year-old Brazilian was at least 60% of their revenue. I say "at least 60%" because I don't have access to their revenues in 1998. Deloitte published a list of the top 20 richest clubs in the world for 1998 -- Celtic were at the bottom (€50 million in revenue), and Betis weren't even on it.
So, with Premier League teams spending $4 billion on transfer fees this summer, let's apply this same way of thinking to all of the record-breaking moves we've seen over the past few months.
Here are the top 50 most expensive transfers from the Premier League, relative to the amount of money that each team is able to spend.
How we calculated the rankings and what they mean
Unfortunately, there's a six-month lag or so for when clubs publish their annual financial accounts. The most recent data we have access to is from the 2023-24 season, so that's what I've used to calculate the rankings.
Given that we're estimating things a bit, don't get too caught up in a player's literal rank, but rather focus on where he generally falls in the rankings. These revenue numbers do change from year to year -- for example, Liverpool's revenues for 2024-25, when they were in the Champions League and won the Premier League, will be higher than they were in 2023-24 -- but teams are rarely going to have a massive jump or dip relative to their competitors.
Research from the consultancy Twenty First Group has found that players in that range of 15-20% of revenue typically play around 70% of the minutes for their new clubs, but if you drop down to 10% of revenue, you're moving closer to about half of the minutes. And that's partially the point of this exercise -- some players were signed for massive-seeming amounts of money, but given the acquiring club's spending power, that might not even mean they're expected to be an every-game starter.
If you're an Arsenal fan worried about Viktor Gyökeres's slow start -- and you have reason to be since he's 27, not 22 -- then you can remind yourself that he didn't even make this list. Although Arsenal did spend €65.8 million to acquire him, that's not nailed-on-starter money for a club of their size.
Lastly, I had to make some estimates for the newly promoted clubs since they all suddenly have access to the most lucrative broadcasting deal in the sport. For Leeds and Burnley, I took their revenues from the last seasons they were in the Premier League, and then rounded up to the nearest 10 million. And for Sunderland, I just gave them the average revenue of the three promoted teams from 2023-24.
OK, now to the 2025 true-cost rankings!
- The 13 riskiest transfers of this summer window, ranked
- USMNT transfer grades: Turner, Reyna, Weah and all moves
- Transfer window winners and losers: How big clubs fared
50. Matheus Cunha, attacking midfielder, Wolverhampton Wanderers to Manchester United
• Transfer fee: €74.2m
• Percentage of revenue: 9.63%
The "ESPN FC" crew discuss their thoughts on Matheus Cunha joining Manchester United for 62.5 million pounds.
49. Evann Guessand, forward, OGC Nice to Aston Villa
• Transfer fee: €30.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 9.67%
48. Eberechi Eze, attacking midfielder, Crystal Palace to Arsenal
• Transfer fee: €69.3m
• Percentage of revenue: 9.67%
47. Granit Xhaka, defensive midfielder, Bayer Leverkusen to Sunderland
• Transfer fee: €15.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 9.68%
46. Bryan Mbeumo, winger, Brentford to Manchester United
• Transfer fee: €75.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 9.73%
I've been quite critical of Man United's signings this past summer -- and I still do not think it is a savvy team-building strategy to sign low-upside, already-in-their-prime players. But for a club of their resources, the outlays for Cunha and Mbeumo were not the kind that say "we're building our team around these guys."
I don't think United have been "good" so far this season. Their underlying numbers look "good" -- most expected goals generated in the league, for one -- but your numbers are always going to look good when the easiest fixture of the season (Burnley, at home) makes up a third of your matches played. That said, they also haven't been as bad as they were made out to be after their loss to Grimsby Town. Cunha and Mbeumo have already made them better.
45. Martín Zubimendi, defensive midfielder, Real Sociedad to Arsenal
• Transfer fee: €70.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 9.77%
Although Liverpool led the way in raw spending this summer, they also took in more transfer fees than all but three other clubs in the world. Arsenal, meanwhile, spent more on transfer fees than everyone other than Liverpool and Chelsea, and then they brought in only €10 million in return. So, their net spend -- fees paid, minus fees received -- was the highest of any club in the world.
And yet, their biggest deal still comprised just about 10% of their annual revenue. What that tells us is that Arsenal spent a ton of money trying to build depth, rather than trying to raise their ceiling. It makes some sense, given last season's injury crisis, but last season already showed us that the team's floor was quite high. They made the Champions League semifinals and comfortably finished second in the Premier League despite Mikel Merino spending much of the spring as their starting striker.
Did they need more depth? Or should they have gone after a couple of potential superstars instead?
44. Loum Tchaouna, winger, RC Strasbourg to Burnley
• Transfer fee: €15.15m
• Percentage of revenue: 9.84%
43. Benjamin Sesko, forward, RB Leipzig to Manchester United
• Transfer fee: €76.5m
• Percentage of revenue: 9.93%
Manchester United introduce Benjamin Sesko to Old Trafford ahead of their friendly vs. Fiorentina.
42. Jamie Gittens, winger, Borussia Dortmund to Chelsea
• Transfer fee: €56.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 10.27%
41. Antoni Milambo, attacking midfielder, Feyenoord to Brentford
• Transfer fee: €20.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 10.30%
40. Mohammed Kudus, winger, West Ham United to Tottenham Hotspur
• Transfer fee: €63.8m
• Percentage of revenue: 10.37%
The winger market really confused me this summer. A lot of teams paid what seemed like a lot of money to bring in players who were good at dribbling but not necessarily good at helping out with the thing that wins you soccer games: goals.
Kudus averaged fewer than 0.4 non-penalty goals+assists per 90 minutes in his two seasons at West Ham, and funnily enough: Through three games with Tottenham, his underlying production (expected goals plus assists per 90 minutes) is exactly the same as it was last season: 0.35. But given the revenues of the Premier League's so-called Big Six, maybe this move isn't quite as baffling as it initially seemed.
39. Jaydee Canvot, center back, FC Toulouse to Crystal Palace
• Transfer fee: €23.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 10.51%
38. Xavi Simons, attacking midfielder, RB Leipzig to Tottenham Hotspur
• Transfer fee: €65.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 10.57%
Simons has the potential to become a true star, and at just 22, he's a much better fit for Tottenham than 27-year-old Eberechi Eze, their initial target, would have been. If we control for revenue, his transfer fee cost Spurs less than Wolves paid to acquire Fer Lopez.
Who is Fer Lopez? Exactly my point!
37. Ladislav Krejcí, center back, Girona FC to Wolverhampton Wanderers
• Transfer fee: €22.5m
• Percentage of revenue: 10.87%
36. Noah Sadiki, central midfielder, Union Saint-Gilloise to Sunderland
• Transfer fee: €17.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 10.97%
35. Fernando López, right winger, Celta de Vigo to Wolverhampton Wanderers
• Transfer fee: €23.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 11.12%
OK, now a defense of Fer Lopez: He put up 0.62 expected goals+assists per 90 minutes as a 20 year old in La Liga last season. Per FBref's algorithm, his most similar player is Cole Palmer. The major issue: He has started seven total games as a professional soccer player.
34. Amine Adli, winger, Bayer 04 Leverkusen to AFC Bournemouth
• Transfer fee: €21.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 11.36%
33. João Pedro, forward, Brighton & Hove Albion to Chelsea
• Transfer fee: €63.7m
• Percentage of revenue: 11.68%
João Pedro says "it's the beginning of a beautiful story" after the 23-year-old earned a call-up to the Brazil squad.
32. Jacob Ramsey, central midfielder, Aston Villa to Newcastle United
• Transfer fee: €45.15m
• Percentage of revenue: 12.14%
31. Ben Doak, winger, Liverpool to AFC Bournemouth
• Transfer fee: €23.2m
• Percentage of revenue: 12.54%
This is an interesting one, as we're inching up into that 15% range. Doak has only one season of professional soccer under his belt. But he was a maniacal dribbler for Middlesbrough in the Championship last season, he has the Liverpool seal of approval, and he doesn't even turn 20 until November.
This deal slid under the radar, but it's a sizable investment for a very young player from one of the savvier teams in the Premier League.
30. Tolu Arokodare, forward, KRC Genk to Wolverhampton Wanderers
• Transfer fee: €26.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 12.57%
29. James McAtee, attacking midfielder, Manchester City to Nottingham Forest
• Transfer fee: €25.5m
• Percentage of revenue: 12.76%
28. Chemsdine Talbi, winger, Club Brugge to Sunderland
• Transfer fee: €20.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 12.90%
27. Brian Brobbey, forward, Ajax Amsterdam to Sunderland
• Transfer fee: €20.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 12.90%
26. Jørgen Strand Larsen, striker, Celta de Vigo to Wolverhampton Wanderers
• Transfer fee: €27.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 13.05%
25. Kiernan Dewsbury-Hall, central midfielder, Chelsea to Everton
• Transfer fee: €28.65m
• Percentage of revenue: 13.17%
24. Hugo Ekitike, forward, Eintracht Frankfurt to Liverpool
• Transfer fee: €95.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 13.29%
23. Charalampos Kostoulas, forward, Olympiacos to Brighton & Hove Albion
• Transfer fee: €35.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 13.63%
It's funny -- and somewhat instructive -- that Ekitike and Kostoulas landed right next to each other. Brighton and Liverpool are two of the smartest clubs in the Premier League, and they both operate with top-down, data-driven approaches. Over the past decade, Liverpool have been the best big club at managing the transfer market, while nobody has been better than Brighton in the tier below.
So, how much money do these teams invest in talented, technical forwards who might be a little too raw to immediately lead the attacking line right away? About 13% of their annual revenue.
22. Mateus Fernandes, central midfielder, Southampton FC to West Ham United
• Transfer fee: €44.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 13.66%
21. Yeremy Pino, right wing, Villarreal CF to Crystal Palace
• Transfer fee: €30.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 13.70%
Palace signed Eze's replacement for €39.3 million less than Arsenal gave them to acquire Eze. And yet their outlay for Pino took up a significantly higher proportion of their revenue than Eze did for Arsenal.
20. Thierno Barry, forward, Villarreal CF to Everton
• Transfer fee: €30.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 13.79%
19. Enzo Le Fée, central midfielder, AS Roma to Sunderland
• Transfer fee: €23.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 14.84%
Here's where we get into the guys who are expected to make big impacts at their new clubs. The 5-foot-7 Le Fée played for Sunderland last season, too, and he's the right kind of bet for a likely-to-be-relegated club to be making. There are a number of tiny Ligue 1 midfielders who nonetheless win the ball a ton and also progress the ball up the field at high rates.
A lot of these guys end up being products of particular systems and they're unable to hack it in some of the faster-paced Big Five leagues. But if Le Fée can hang in the Premier League, then Sunderland have got themselves a league-average midfielder, which doesn't sound like much but would be a huge win for a team that's expected to be in a relegation battle all season long.
18. Armando Broja, forward, Chelsea to Burnley
• Transfer fee: €23.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 14.94%
Broja turns 24 this month. He has played over 3,000 Premier League minutes. And he has scored eight non-penalty goals. That's 0.23 goals per 90 minutes. The last time he scored a Premier League goal -- or any goal in any domestic league -- was on Oct. 2 ... 2023.
17. Arnaud Kalimuendo, forward, Stade Rennais to Nottingham Forest
• Transfer fee: €30.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 15.01%
16. Yoane Wissa, forward, Brentford to Newcastle United
• Transfer fee: €57.7m
• Percentage of revenue: 15.52%
The average age of the next 15 players is 22.6. Wissa just turned 29.
15. Djordje Petrovic, goalkeeper, Chelsea to AFC Bournemouth
• Transfer fee: €28.9m
• Percentage of revenue: 15.63%
14. Simon Adingra, winger, Brighton & Hove Albion to Sunderland
• Transfer fee: €24.4m
• Percentage of revenue: 15.74%
13. Anthony Elanga, winger, Nottingham Forest to Newcastle United
• Transfer fee: €61.4m
• Percentage of revenue: 16.51%
12. Florian Wirtz, attacking midfielder, Bayer Leverkusen to Liverpool
• Transfer fee: €125.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 17.49%
As Twenty First Group's Aurel Namziu pointed out earlier this summer, the relative fee Liverpool paid to acquire Wirtz is the same as what they paid to acquire Andy Carroll back in January of 2011. Carroll scored six goals and created two assists in his Liverpool career. Even with Wirtz's slow start, it would be a disappointment if he didn't beat that this season.
11. Dilane Bakwa, winger, RC Strasbourg to Nottingham Forest
• Transfer fee: €35.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 17.51%
10. Tyler Dibling, winger, Southampton FC to Everton
• Transfer fee: €40.5m
• Percentage of revenue: 18.61%
This is a huge investment for a player who scored two goals and added zero assists in 1,800 Premier League minutes last season. Dibling is another one of these guys who dribbles ... and that's it.
But he turned 19 back in March, so there's still plenty of room for him to develop, unlike with Kudus or Newcastle's move for Anthony Elanga. It's a good sign that Dibling played a lot in the Premier League and showed at least one high-level skill as a teenager, but that skill probably has the biggest discrepancy between how valuable people think it is versus how valuable it actually is.
There's plenty of upside and plenty of downside to this one.
9. Lesley Ugochukwu, defensive midfielder, Chelsea to Burnley
• Transfer fee: €28.7m
• Percentage of revenue: 18.65%
As much as I continue to struggle to understand their team-building philosophy, I have to admit that Chelsea are really good at moving players to new teams. They brought in €332.25 million from transfer fees this summer -- nearly €100 million more than anybody else.
8. Kevin, winger, Shakhtar Donetsk to Fulham
• Transfer fee: €40.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 18.85%
After doing almost nothing the entire summer, Fulham smashed their transfer record to bring in the tiny, 22-year-old Brazilian winger on the final day of the window. He's a continuation of the theme: so much dribbling and so little else. Since the war started, the quality of the Ukrainian league has declined significantly -- for obvious reasons. And in Kevin's one full season with Shakhtar, he averaged 0.31 non-penalty goals+assists per 90 minutes.
Is that really going to improve when he comes to the Premier League?
7. Bafodé Diakité, center back, LOSC Lille to AFC Bournemouth
• Transfer fee: €35.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 18.93%
Bournemouth have four players on this list, but that's less because they're trying to build on last season's success and more because they received €238.41 million in transfer fees for a number of key starters. Chelsea, the only club to bring in more transfer revenue, moved on from just a handful of first-team regulars, whereas Bournemouth lost five of their 10 most-used players. Despite all of that, they've looked quite good across their first three matches.
6. Alexander Isak, striker, Newcastle United to Liverpool
• Transfer fee: €144.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 20.15%
While I don't think clubs are directly thinking about their transfers in terms of percentage of revenue, their revenues are directly affecting how much money they're willing to spend on transfers. And so it really does just tend to work out that when clubs break their transfer records, they tend to do it for about as much as Liverpool did for Isak: 20% of their revenue.
Steve Nicol discusses Liverpool's attacking options as Alexander Isak presents a good dilemma for Arne Slot.
5. Habib Diarra, central midfielder, RC Strasbourg to Sunderland
• Transfer fee: €31.5m
• Percentage of revenue: 20.32%
This brings us to the end of our Sunderland players. They have seven guys on this list -- two more than anyone else. Talbi, Brobbey, La Fée, Adingra and Diarra all cost more to acquire than any other previous Sunderland player, and Xhaka and Sadiki still fit within the top 10. Forget proportions -- the Black Cats have spent more money on transfer fees than any other promoted side ever has.
The only other promoted sides to come close to Sunderland's spending were Nottingham Forest in 2021 and Aston Villa in 2019. Both of those teams are still in the Premier League.
4. Dan Ndoye, winger, Bologna FC 1909 to Nottingham Forest
• Transfer fee: €42.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 21.01%
3. Omari Hutchinson, attacking midfielder, Ipswich Town to Nottingham Forest
• Transfer fee: €43.4m
• Percentage of revenue: 21.71%
Forest have the second-most players on this list, the most in the top 15 (3), and the most in the top 10 (2). Now, they did move Elanga to Newcastle in a club-record departure, in addition to sending Danilo to Botafogo for €23 million as Forest majority owner Evangelos Marinakis and Botafogo owner John Textor continue their, um, interesting relationship. On top of that, they also have increased revenue coming from their Europa League qualification.
But ... even with the added inflows, Forest have spent a lot of money for a team with their resources. And they've done it at a time when their manager, their new director of football and their owner are in some kind of feud. It's not normal to hear a manager literally say, "Where there's smoke, there's fire," in a news conference.
Just a really weird summer -- and these Hutchinson and Ndoye deals cap off a long list of moves across the league for speedy and/or tricky wingers who haven't produced many goals.
2. Dango Ouattara, left wing, AFC Bournemouth to Brentford
• Transfer fee: €42.8m
• Percentage of revenue: 22.05%
In my preseason ranking of the top 50 players in the Premier League, I wrote the following: "Ouattara ... played all across Bournemouth's front line, finished the season in the top 15 for non-penalty expected goals+assists, functioned as a fantastic outlet and put in a ton of defensive work. Given that his expected numbers were higher than his actual output, a savvy, richer team (if one exists) should see if Bournemouth would be willing to let him go."
Brentford are a savvy team. And thanks to the departures of Mbeumo and eventually Wissa, they were richer than they normally are this past summer. This move for Outta is exactly the kind of deal I'd be willing to stretch into the plus-20%-of-revenue range for if I were a midtable club.
1. Nick Woltemade, striker, VfB Stuttgart to Newcastle United
• Transfer fee: €85.0m
• Percentage of revenue: 22.86%
This is the second time this week I've ranked this transfer No. 1 on a list. That is not a compliment.