With Erling Haaland's second-place finish in the 2023 Ballon d'Or voting likely to increase his value to Manchester City, here are the five superstars who are regarded as the most valuable in the world today.
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* Note: This list is based on the valuations from Transfermarkt.
5. Bukayo Saka (Arsenal England)
While the Premier League is considered by many to be the best league in the world, it has not been considered a hot bed for the world's greatest talents. However, that slowly seems to be changing, and a player who has a lot to do with that is Bukayo Saka. Since Mikel Arteta's arrival as manager at Arsenal, the 22-year-old London native has slowly been asserting himself as one of the best players in the division. Last season, the winger was on fire for the Gunners as his 14 goals and 11 assists in the competition helped his side challenge for the title. His blistering form has continued into the new campaign as he already has four goals and three assists in nine league appearances, form that has seen Transfermarkt value him at a staggering €120 million (R2.3 billion).
T-3. Vinicius Junior (Real Madrid Brazil)
For over a decade now, it is LALIGA that arguably boasts the best players in the world, with either Real Madrid or Barcelona being the home of the Ballon d'Or winner for much of the 2010s. That trend has seemingly continued as Vinicius Junior is now one of the main faces of the Spanish top flight. While at the beginning of his Los Blancos career, he may have struggled to produce an end product in the final third, that is no longer the case as the Brazilian youngster has now managed score 20+ goals and provide 20+ assists in all competitions for two straight seasons. It is for this reason that he is valued at €150 million (R2.9 billion).
T-3. Jude Bellingham (Real Madrid England)
In the past two seasons, Vinicius Junior relied heavily on Karim Benzema, but the Brazil international now has more youthful assistance in Real's latest big-money signing, Jude Bellingham. While there were high expectations on the Englishman when he arrived at the Santiago Bernabeu, it is safe to say that the Stourbridge native has far exceeded them. In Vinicius' absence for much of the beginning of the 2023/24 campaign, the attacking midfielder has managed to score 13 goals in as many appearances for Los Merengues. Couple that with the fact that he is only 20 years old and producing for arguably the biggest club in world football, and it is no wonder that he is now also valued at €150 million (R2.9 billion).
T-1. Kylian Mbappe (Paris Saint-Germain France)
Long before the transfer was completed, Madrid was mooted as Bellingham's likeliest destination when he left Borussia Dortmund, and the same could be the case for Kylian Mbappe. While the world waits to see if the France captain will finally complete his long talked about move to Spain, they can watch him continuously find the back of the net with Paris Saint-Germain. The 24-year-old has been scoring for fun since joining Les Parisiens and is already the French club's all-time top goalscorer with 224 goals in 272 appearances. Factor in his age, the 2018 FIFA World Cup win and his 2022 World Cup final heroics, and it makes sense that he is the joint-highest-valued player in world football right now at €180 million (R3.5 billion).
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T-1. Erling Haaland (Manchester City Norway)
Mbappe shares that honour with Erling Haaland. Most already knew that the Norwegian marksman would be an amazing addition to City when he made the move to the Etihad Stadium at the beginning of last season, but nobody could've predicted how prolific he would truly prove. The striker went a on record-breaking spree as far as finding the back of the net was concerned and helped the Citizens capture an historic treble. And he has continued his remarkable form in the new season as he already has 11 Premier League goals in 10 matches. The Leeds-born attacker's value is consequently €180 million (R3.5 billion) too.
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