The 10 most expensive goalkeepers of all time

23 Nov 2022 15:46 GMT |
Updated: 25 Sept 2026 12:27 BST |
2 min read

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Kepa Arrizabalaga remains the most expensive goalkeeper in football history, courtesy of his €80 million move from Athletic Club to Chelsea in 2018.

Athletic Club strictly follow a club policy of only employing players from the Basque region, meaning it typically costs a lot of money to sign one of their talents. As a result, Chelsea were forced to break the world-record fee for a goalkeeper in order to land Kepa in 2018, after losing Thibaut Courtois to Real Madrid in the same summer transfer window.

Chelsea were also linked Alisson before pursuing a deal for Kepa, but the Brazilian joined Liverpool from Roma instead and he was briefly the most expensive goalkeeper of all time before Kepa’s move. Alisson is now second on this list, having cost Liverpool €62.5m. His transfer was a huge success.

The third-most expensive goalkeeper of all time is Gianluigi Buffon thanks to his €52.9m move from Parma to Juventus way back in 2001. This stood as the world-record transfer fee for a goalkeeper until 2018. Buffon is remembered as arguably the greatest goalkeeper of all time.

Andre Onana’s transfer to Manchester United in the summer of 2023 sees him rank fourth on the list, having set the Red Devils back €50.2m. Inter had signed him on a Bosman deal just one year before his move to Old Trafford and he failed to live up to his lofty price tag.

James Trafford became the fifth-most expensive goalkeeper in history when he left Manchester City to join Leeds United in 2026. The England shot-stopper played a back-up role to Gianluigi Donnarumma after returning to Man City in 2025, and Leeds won the race for his signature after Trafford opted to leave the Etihad Stadium in search of regular game time.

Lucas Chevalier sits at number six on this list after PSG signed him from Lille for €40m in 2025. He was arguably the most highly-rated young goalkeeper in the world at the time of his move, but his first season in Paris was a disaster.

Brazilian international Ederson is seventh on the list. His move from Benfica to Manchester City cost €40m, the same fee as Chevalier, and he played a pivotal role in establishing City’s dominance under Pep Guardiola.

Next up is Jasper Cillessen, whose move from Barcelona to Valencia was worth a whopping €35m. He played just 32 times across a three-year spell at Camp Nou, yet the Blaugrana were still able to sell him for a huge fee in 2019.

Meanwhile, the aforementioned Courtois is ninth after he left Chelsea to join Real Madrid for €35m in 2019. He has cemented his place as one of modern football’s best goalkeepers during his spell with Los Blancos.

Lucca Brughmans completes the top 10 thanks to his €33m move from Genk to Liverpool in 2026. The Belgian was just 18 years old when the deal was finalised and he immediately returned to Genk on loan.

The 10 most expensive goalkeepers of all time