About this chart race
Neymar's 222 million euro move from Barcelona to Paris Saint-Germain in 2017 has topped this list for ten straight years. Nothing since has come within 76 million euros of it, and it is still 23% clear of second place - Kylian Mbappe's 180 million from Monaco to the same club.
There have been only three changes at the top in eighteen years: Cristiano Ronaldo's 94 million to Real Madrid in 2009, Gareth Bale's 100 million in 2013, Paul Pogba's 105 million in 2016, and then Neymar, who did not beat the record so much as double it - 105 to 222 in a single summer.
The churn is all underneath. Six of the current top twelve were signed in 2025 or 2026, and English clubs paid for six of the twelve - Manchester City, Liverpool and Chelsea two each. Ronaldo's 2009 world record has been pushed down to 29th on the all-time list.
This animated ranking shows how transfer fee changed across 48 series between 2009 and 2026. The bars re-order themselves as the years advance, so overtakes are visible as they happen rather than hidden inside a table. Use the list on the left to choose exactly who competes, drag the slider to jump to any year, or open the table view to read the underlying numbers.
As of 2026, Neymar (2017) leads with 222.
Included in this race
Neymar (2017), Kylian Mbappé (2017), Enzo Fernández (2026), Alexander Isak (2025), Morgan Rogers (2026), Elliot Anderson (2026), João Félix (2019), Yan Diomande (2026), Bradley Barcola (2026), Enzo Fernández (2023), Antoine Griezmann (2019), Philippe Coutinho (2018), Jack Grealish (2021), Florian Wirtz (2025), Declan Rice (2023), Moisés Caicedo (2023), Romelu Lukaku (2021), Paul Pogba (2016), Ousmane Dembélé (2017), Gareth Bale (2013), Eden Hazard (2019), Cristiano Ronaldo (2018), Cristiano Ronaldo (2009), Gonzalo Higuaín (2016), Romelu Lukaku (2017), Virgil van Dijk (2018), Luis Suárez (2014), James Rodríguez (2014), Zinedine Zidane (2001), Kevin De Bruyne (2015), Ángel Di María (2014), Zlatan Ibrahimović (2009), Kaká (2009), Edinson Cavani (2013), Ángel Di María (2015), Raheem Sterling (2015), Luís Figo (2000), Radamel Falcao (2013), Fernando Torres (2011), Hernán Crespo (2000), Neymar (2013), Hulk (2012), Carlos Tevez (2009), Gianluigi Buffon (2001), Christian Vieri (1999), Gaizka Mendieta (2001), Rio Ferdinand (2002), Ronaldo (2002).
Source
Data from Wikipedia - List of most expensive association football transfers (year-end revisions). Every figure shown comes from this source — nothing is estimated or generated.
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