Neymar overtakes Lukaku for highest combined transfer fees in history

Suraj Radia

15 Aug 2023 12:48 CDT
3 min read

Neymar celebrates for PSG against Montpellier — © ProShots

Neymar has become the overall most expensive player in football history following his transfer from Paris Saint-Germain to Al-Hilal, taking the total outlay spent on him throughout his career to more than €400 million.

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The 31-year-old is the latest superstar to join Saudi Arabia this summer and he has signed a two-year deal, with PSG netting a fee just shy of €100m, having paid a world-record €222m for him in 2017.

Romelu Lukaku was previously the player with the highest combined transfer fees, having seen Manchester United, Chelsea, Inter and Everton spend a total of €333m to sign him across his career.

Lukaku is still in talks to leave Chelsea this summer, meaning he is likely to see that number rise further, however Neymar’s stunning transfer to Al-Hilal has now eclipsed the sums accumulated by the Belgian.

Neymar has become the first player to be transferred for more than €100m twice and clubs have now spent a total of €400m on the forward during his entire career - that is now the most of any player in history.

Neymar was the most expensive Brazilian player in history when he signed for Barcelona from Santos for €88m in 2013, although the fee is disputed due to the controversial nature of the transfer, with the Spanish side having been investigated for illegal payments to the forward.

The Blaugrana broke that record when they signed Philippe Coutinho from Liverpool.

Neymar reaps benefits after Mbappe Saudi snub

Neymar has agreed a contract worth €275 across two years at Al-Hilal, although that salary could rise further still.

The Brazilian has left for Al-Hilal after the Saudi side failed in a bid for his PSG teammate Kylian Mbappe this summer, with the forward unwilling to hold talks despite a bid of €300m being accepted.

If Mbappe had made the move instead of Neymar, he would have easily become the most expensive player of all time, both in terms of single outlay and cumulative fees, with PSG having paid €180m to sign him from Monaco in 2018.

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Instead, Neymar overtakes Lukaku and puts further distance between the Belgian and Cristiano Ronaldo, who has the third-highest total fees with €221m.