The 10 most expensive French players of all time

9 Apr 2023 10:38 BST |
Updated: 15 Oct 2026 21:17 BST |
5 min read

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France are a footballing giant and they arguably possess the best squad depth of any country on the planet.

Some of the world’s most expensive players are available to the France national team and they won the 2018 World Cup, before reaching the final yet again in 2022.

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

10. Lucas Hernandez – €80m (Atletico Madrid to Bayern Munich, 2019)

Bayern Munich shocked the European football world when they made Lucas Hernandez their most expensive signing of all time in 2019.

He starred at left-back in France’s triumph at the 2018 World Cup, but he failed to justify his insane €80m transfer fee during his four-year stint at the Allianz Arena.

Injury issues and competition from Alphonso Davies limited Hernandez to just 107 games at Bayern, while he never mustered more than 25 Bundesliga appearances in a single campaign. He left to join PSG in 2023.

9. Aurelien Tchouameni – €80m (Monaco to Real Madrid, 2022)

Aurelien Tchouameni was heavily linked with a Monaco exit in 2021, amid interest from Chelsea, but he eventually joined Real Madrid the following year.

Liverpool also wanted to sign the France midfielder, but he had his heart set on a move to Los Blancos, and the Spanish giants paid an initial €80m to bring him to La Liga.

Tchouameni left Monaco with 95 appearances for the club and became an important player for Madrid in both midfield and defence.

8. Wesley Fofana – €80.4m (Leicester to Chelsea, 2022)

Wesley Fofana was an immense talent at both Saint-Etienne and Leicester City, but his move to Chelsea was an extremely risky transfer for the Blues.

The French defender had missed the majority of the 2021-22 season due to an ACL injury, yet the Stamford Bridge outfit opted to make him the fourth most expensive defender in history at the time of the deal.

Fofana missed the entirety of the 2023-24 campaign thanks to another ACL tear and has suffered more injury woes since.

7. Hugo Ekitike – €95m (Eintracht Frankfurt to Liverpool, 2025)

Liverpool made a number of big money signings in 2025, but their €95m capture of Hugo Ekitike from Eintracht Frankfurt was easily the best of the bunch.

The forward had finally been able to display his potential with the German side after a difficult few years at PSG, and Liverpool made their move despite Ekitike only playing one full season at Frankfurt, where he scored 15 Bundesliga goals.

Ekitike scored 17 goals in all competitions during his debut season on Merseyside before a devastating Achilles injury in April 2026 condemned him to potentially a year on the sidelines.

6. Randal Kolo Muani – €95m (Eintracht Frankfurt to PSG, 2023)

Eintracht Frankfurt earned a €95m profit on Randal Kolo Muani in just one year, having signed the Frenchman on a free transfer before selling him for just shy of €100m.

He scored 26 goals and provided 17 assists during his sole campaign in Germany, while he impressed during France’s run to the 2022 World Cup final. PSG won the race for his signature in 2023, fighting off competition from a number of top Premier League clubs.

However, things never worked out in Paris, and he fell out with manager Luis Enrique. After loan spells at Juventus and Tottenham, he rejoined the former for €41.2m in 2026.

5. Paul Pogba – €105m (Juventus to Man Utd, 2016)

Paul Pogba became the world’s most expensive player when he rejoined Manchester United in 2016, but he is now the fifth priciest French footballer in history.

After leaving Old Trafford to pursue regular first-team football, he enjoyed a sublime four-year spell at Juventus, racking up 190 appearances, 34 goals and nine trophies in Turin.

He won the 2013 Golden Boy award before being nominated for the Ballon d’Or the following year. Pogba’s time back at Man Utd didn’t go as planned, however, and he failed to live up to his €105m price tag.

He rejoined Juventus in 2022 but was restricted to just a handful of games due to constant injuries and an 18-month doping suspension. An attempt at rebuilding his career at Monaco failed, and he was released after just a year in 2026.

4. Antoine Griezmann – €120m (Atletico Madrid to Barcelona, 2019)

Antoine Griezmann became a legend during his time with Atletico Madrid, but he risked that status by leaving the club to join Barcelona in 2019.

The Blaugrana were keen to bolster their attack, and Griezmann arrived for a whopping €120m. His time at Camp Nou wasn’t disastrous, but the Frenchman didn’t hit the heights expected of him, scoring 35 goals in 102 appearances.

Recognising his mistake, he returned to Atleti on a two-year loan deal in 2021, and the move became permanent in 2023, which allowed him to cement his legendary status. In 2026, he left as one of the club’s all-time greats to see out the twilight years of his career at Orlando City in MLS.

3. Bradley Barcola – €125m (PSG to Liverpool, 2026)

Liverpool were in desperate need of wide players in the summer of 2026 and made PSG star Bradley Barcola their top target. The Frenchman was keen on the move after falling down the pecking order in Paris, but agreeing a deal was anything but easy.

Despite Barcola’s reduced role, PSG initially demanded an eye-watering €170m for the former Lyon star. After weeks of negotiations, a breakthrough was achieved with Liverpool pushing the price down to €125m, still considered too high a fee by many.

Having originally spent €45m on him in 2023, PSG made a monumental profit on Barcola, who left after 152 appearances and with 39 goals and 37 assists to his name.

2. Ousmane Dembele – €135m (Borussia Dortmund to Barcelona, 2017)

Ousmane Dembele had made just 29 senior appearances for Stade Rennais when Borussia Dortmund opted to sign him in 2016, but that decision paid off massively.

The Frenchman enjoyed a sublime campaign at the Signal Iduna Park, tallying 10 goals and 22 assists across all competitions, which attracted interest from Barcelona.

The Blaugrana were eager to replace Neymar, and they identified Dembele as his perfect successor. However, injury issues plagued his time at Camp Nou, and he left to join Paris Saint-Germain in 2023. He exploded in Paris and won the Ballon d’Or in 2025.

1. Kylian Mbappe – €180m (Monaco to PSG, 2018)

Kylian Mbappe is the most expensive French player in football history, courtesy of his huge €180m move from Monaco to PSG in 2018.

The France superstar was the hottest young prospect in world football during his time at Monaco, and he earned a move to PSG after bagging 40 goal contributions in his final season in the principality.

Mbappe initially joined PSG on loan, but the deal became permanent for €180m in 2018, and he eventually notched 256 goals in 308 games for the club, becoming their all-time record goalscorer, before joining Real Madrid on a free transfer in 2024.

The 10 most expensive French soccer players of all time

Carlo Garganese is a highly-respected football writer, broadcaster and editor with more than 15 years of experience working at the highest level for major global brands. Garganese spent 12 years at Goal.com, where he played a significant role in building and developing the website into one of the largest football media organisations in the world.

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