Lamine Yamal has been identified as the player with the highest market value in global football following his recent contract extension with Barcelona, according to findings from a new study.
Swiss research group CIES Football Observatory estimates that it would require a transfer fee of at least 400 million euros to secure the 17-year-old from the Catalan giants. This figure is nearly double the 222 million euros world record transfer fee PSG paid for Neymar in 2017.
Yamal`s rise to prominence has been exceptionally rapid. After making his La Liga debut at just 15 years and nine months – the fifth youngest player ever to do so – he went on to play a starring role for Spain in their victorious EURO 2024 campaign, where he was recognized with awards for goal and young player of the tournament.
His achievements also include winning two La Liga titles and a Copa Del Rey, as well as receiving last year’s prestigious Golden Boy award.
The six-year agreement he signed with Barcelona last week includes a remarkable one billion euro buy-out clause, which has significantly contributed to the surge in his estimated valuation.
The report accompanying the study commented: “This extraordinary figure is linked to equally extraordinary performances achieved at an age – 18 in July – when most players, even the best, are just starting out at professional level.”
The statistical methodology employed by the researchers to construct their valuation model is known as multiple linear regression (MLR), using transfer fees paid by clubs as the independent variable. The dataset comprises over 8000 player transactions for monetary fees globally from July 2014 to March 2024.
Erling Haaland is ranked as the most valuable player in the Premier League, with an estimated value of 239.6 million euros. Real Madrid’s Jude Bellingham completes the top three most valuable players globally with a valuation of 233.8 million euros.
Bellingham’s teammate at Real Madrid, Kylian Mbappe, is fourth on the list, valued at 192.5 million euros, while Bayern Munich’s Jamal Musiala rounds out the top five at 154.8 million euros. The English Premier League is overwhelmingly represented in the top 100 players with 42 individuals, followed by Spain’s La Liga with 19. Among clubs, Champions League winners Paris St-Germain have the highest representation with 11 players.
Brighton’s Bart Verbruggen is listed as the most valuable goalkeeper at 64.3 million euros, and Barcelona’s Pau Cubarsi holds the highest valuation among centre backs at 118 million euros.
Top 10 most valued players
