Top 50 priciest Premier League transfers ever, with prices updated for inflation
A list that adjusts Premier League transfer fees for inflation has shown that Alan Shearer’s record-breaking £15 million move to Newcastle United would now be worth a staggering £223.3 million.
The football world changed a lot around the start of the 21st century, turning the game into a multi-billion-pound business with billionaire owners, big TV deals, and huge player salaries.
Looking at how British transfer fees have grown over time really puts this into perspective.
Only ten years after Shearer’s famous 1996 transfer, Andriy Shevchenko moved to Chelsea from AC Milan for more than twice that amount.
Then, a decade later, Paul Pogba set a new British transfer record by returning to Manchester United for around £89 million. The current record? Alexander Isak’s £125 million move to Liverpool last summer.
It makes you wonder: what would the most expensive Premier League signings look like if we adjust for inflation?
This week, football finance expert Kieran Maguire took a closer look.
“Who would be the most expensive player in Premier League history after adjusting for football inflation? It has to be the greatest goalscorer… Alan Shearer,” he said on X.
Maguire shared an updated list with inflated fees, where Shearer appears twice alongside big names like Rio Ferdinand, Juan Sebastian Veron, Stan Collymore, and Fernando Torres, making up the top five.
For example, Dennis Bergkamp’s £7.5 million move from Inter Milan to Arsenal in 1995 would now be around £147 million, and Pogba’s transfer to Manchester United has been adjusted to £133.4 million.
Here’s the full list, thanks to @KieranMaguire.
As you might expect, Manchester United players show up a lot, with Veron, Ferdinand, Pogba, Dwight Yorke, and Andy Cole all in the top 10.
Roy Keane’s 1993 move from Nottingham Forest to Manchester United cost £3.75 million back then but would now be worth £91.8 million, putting him at 49th on the list.
Just below Keane is Mesut Ozil, who joined Arsenal from Real Madrid in 2013 for £42.5 million, which adjusts to £89.2 million today.
What do you think of the list? Share your thoughts in the comments!