The 10 most expensive German players of all time

Cameron Smith

• 27 Jul 2024 13:00 BST
• 5 min read

Germany are one of the biggest nations in world football and they have the joint-second highest tally of World Cup victories in history.

Unsurprisingly, they have benefitted from some of the greatest players of all time and many of those stars have moved clubs for huge transfer fees.

Below, FootballTransfers runs through the 10 most expensive German players of all time.

READ MORE: The 10 most expensive English players of all time

10. Mario Gotze - €37m (Dortmund to Bayern, 2013)

Two years after winning the Golden Ball award, Mario Gotze sealed a controversial move from Borussia Dortmund to Bayern Munich.

After 36 goal contributions in his final season at Dortmund, Gotze missed the Champions League final between the two clubs through injury, having already agreed to join Bayern for €37m.

He eventually re-joined Dortmund in 2016, two years after scoring the winning goal in the 2014 World Cup.

READ MORE: The 10 most expensive Brazilian players of all time

9. Thilo Kehrer - €37m (Schalke to PSG, 2018)

Thilo Kehrer sealed a surprisingly expensive move to Paris Saint-Germain in 2018, having only made 59 first-team appearances for Schalke.

He failed to become a guaranteed starter at the Parc des Princes and after an underwhelming four-year stint, he joined West Ham United for just €12m in 2022.

8. Shkodran Mustafi - €41m (Valencia to Arsenal, 2016)

Shkodran Mustafi became somewhat of a laughing stock at Arsenal, but his reputation was top notch before he moved to England.

However, the German defender was error-prone during his time at the Emirates Stadium and he subsequently left on a free transfer in 2021. He retired from football in 2024 after one year without a club.

7. Julian Draxler - €43m (Schalke to Wolfsburg, 2015)

Julian Draxler was one of the hottest prospects in German football during his time at Schalke and Wolfsburg pulled off a huge coup by signing the attacking midfielder.

However, his move to Wolfsburg came following a huge injury during his final campaign at Schalke and Draxler only made 45 appearances for the club following his €43m.

The German then joined PSG in January 2017.

6. Mesut Ozil - €47m (Real Madrid to Arsenal, 2013)

The signing of Mesut Ozil was a massive statement of intent by Arsenal. He arrived with a huge reputation from Real Madrid and went a long way to repairing the damage of Robin van Persie’s exit to Manchester United one year prior.

Ozil notched 19 assists in the 2015-16 Premier League campaign, almost breaking Thierry Henry’s single season record, but his career in north London ended on a sour note after a contract dispute.

5. Leroy Sane - €49m (Man City to Bayern, 2020)

Leroy Sane’s move back to Germany was expected in 2019, but an ACL injury ruled out a transfer to Bayern Munich and he was forced to wait until 2020.

Sane had just one year left on his Man City contract by that time and he finally completed an Allianz Arena switch for €49m.

4. Leroy Sane - €52m (Schalke to Man City, 2016)

Sane’s move from Schalke to Man City cost the Premier League giants €52m in 2016 after a stunning breakout into senior football in the Bundesliga.

The German winger eventually left Man City with 135 appearances, 39 goals and seven major trophies to his name.

3. Timo Werner - €53m (RB Leipzig to Chelsea, 2020)

Timo Werner was wanted by every elite club in Europe after notching 34 goals and 13 assists during his final season at RB Leipzig.

Chelsea won the race for his signature and although he played a role in the Blues’ Champions League win in 2021, Werner was ultimately a disappointment and he re-joined Leipzig for just €20m in 2022.

2. Kai Havertz - €75m (Chelsea to Arsenal, 2023)

Like Werner, Kai Havertz left Chelsea after a poor spell at Stamford Bridge, although he memorably scored the winner in the aforementioned Champions League final.

The German attacker was viewed as a perfect signing by Mikel Arteta and his debut campaign at the Emirates Stadium saw him score 14 goals in all competitions.

1. Kai Havertz - €80m (Bayer Leverkusen to Chelsea, 2020)

Havertz’s original move to Chelsea cost €80m in 2020. The Germany international was one of the biggest talents in world football after a fantastic spell in Bayer Leverkusen’s first-team.

He never fully adapted to life in the Premier League and left after an underwhelming spell, bar his Champions League winner.

The 10 most expensive German soccer players of all time