The 10 most expensive French players of all time

The 10 most expensive French players of all time 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, sources runs through the 10 most expensive French players of all time. READ MORE: 10. Zinedine Zidane - €77.5m (Juventus to Real Madrid, 2001) Real Madrid broke their own record for the most expensive transfer in football history when they paid €77.5m to sign Juventus midfielder Zinedine Zidane in 2001. The France legend had spent the past five years in Turin, racking up 212 appearances for the Old Lady, while he also helped his country win the 1998 World Cup during his time at the club. He went on to become an icon at Real Madrid, winning six trophies with Los Blancos, including the Champions League during his debut campaign. 9. 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 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. 8. 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. 7. Wesley Fofana - €80.4m (Leicester to Chelsea, 2022) Wesley Fofana was an immense talent at both St Etienne and Leicester City, but his move to Chelsea was an extremely ribroadcaster 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 suffered more injury woes the following season. 6. 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 arguably 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 achillies injury in April 2026 ruled him out of the World Cup and condemned him to potentially a year out on the sidelines. 5. 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. He moved to Juventus on loan in January 2025. 4. Paul Pogba - €105m (Juventus to Man Utd, 2016) Paul Pogba became the world’s most expensive player when he re-joined Manchester United in 2016, but he is now the fourth 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