The CIES Football Observatory has created a list of 100 players with the top estimated transfer values in football; English and Brazilian players dominate rankings, Manchester City are the best-represented club
Monday 15 January 2024 11:51, UK
Real Madrid and England midfielder Jude Bellingham currently has the highest transfer value in football at more than £230m, according to research carried out by the International Centre for Sports Studies (CIES).
The list estimates player values by considering performance, age and contracts, which explains why Kylian Mbappe (£91.3m) has plunged to No 27 in the chart - with his deal at Paris Saint-Germain set to expire this summer.
The rankings suggest Bellingham has doubled his value in six months after hitting new heights since his £115m summer move from Borussia Dortmund to Madrid - currently topping the LaLiga scoring charts with 13 goals.
Manchester City goal sensation Erling Haaland is next up with a valuation of £216.1m, ahead of Bellingham's team-mates Vinicius Junior and Rodrygo.
Arsenal's key attacking trio of Bukayo Saka, Martin Odegaard and Gabriel Martelli all make the top 11, joined by City's Phil Foden and Julian Alvarez.
Other Premier League stars valued in excess of £100m include Dominik Szoboszlai, Marcus Rashford, Enzo Fernández, Rodri, Darwin Nunez, Bruno Guimaraes, Kai Havertz, Alexis Mac Allister, Cole Palmer, William Saliba, Declan Rice, Alexander Isak, Cody Gakpo, Dejan Kulusevski and Jeremy Doku.
Rashford and Rasmus Hojlund are the top-ranked players representing Manchester United - despite the pair scoring only four league goals between them this season - followed by Alejandro Garnacho, Bruno Fernandes and Antony.
Arsenal stopper Aaron Ramsdale, who lost his No 1 shirt to David Raya this term, also makes a surprise inclusion at No 73, while struggling Chelsea striker Nicolas Jackson weighs in at No 62.
More than half of the top-100 list features players representing Premier League clubs (51) - more than twice as many players from the next most represented league, LaLiga (20) in Spain, followed by the German Bundesliga (12), Serie A in Italy (eight), Ligue 1 in France, Primera Liga in Portugal (both four) and the Brazilian Serie A.
A table-topping 11 players from Manchester City feature in the rankings, with title-challengers Arsenal next on the list with nine.
El Clasico rivals Barcelona and Real Madrid are next up, while Premier League powerhouses Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United are among the top clubs.
High-flying Brighton (four) also feature in the top 10 - despite Roberto De Zerbi's side offloading numerous top stars in recent transfer windows - with Evan Ferguson, Kaoru Mitoma, Joao Pedro and on-loan Barcelona star Ansu Fati making the grade.
Premier League clubs Aston Villa, Newcastle and Tottenham also feature in the rankings.
Is there a premium for English talent? The rankings suggest there is. A table-topping 13 players represent England - with uncapped Newcastle winger Anthony Gordon among the list - followed by Brazil (12), France (11), Spain (10) and Portugal (nine).
The winter transfer window is now open and will close at 11pm in England and midnight in Scotland on Thursday 1 February, 2024.
To ensure harmonisation with the major leagues in Europe, the closing dates were set following discussions with the EFL, DFL, Serie A, LaLiga, and LFP, who will all close their summer and winter windows on 1 September and 1 February respectively.
Keep up to date with all the latest transfer news and rumours in our dedicated Transfer Centre blog on Sky Sports' digital platforms, while you can also catch up with the ins, outs and analysis on Sky Sports News, including daily transfer shows, and listen to our Transfer Talk podcast.
