The 10 most expensive players over 30 of all time

Stuart Telford

• 9 May 2024 14:36 BST
• 4 min read

Cristiano Ronaldo is the most expensive player over 30 in football history, thanks to his €117 million transfer from Real Madrid to Juventus in 2018.

Players usually see their transfer value plummet once they hit 30, but five-time Ballon d’Or winner Ronaldo is one of a few exceptions.

The Portuguese football legend became an icon during his time at Real Madrid, but he left Los Blancos in a shock move following his nation's exit at the 2018 World Cup, with the Spanish giants surprisingly turning a profit on him.

READ MORE: The 10 most expensive teenagers of all time

Harry Kane is the second-most expensive player over 30, thanks to his €95 million transfer from Tottenham Hotspur to Bayern Munich in 2023.

The England captain was also pursued by Manchester United during the 2023 summer transfer window, but Bayern won the race for his signature and he posted the best goalscoring numbers of his career during his debut campaign at the Allianz Arena.

In third place is Neymar. The Brazilian is the most expensive player of all time and his move from Paris Saint-Germain to Al-Hilal in 2023 means he is included in third place on the list of the highest transfer fees ever paid for a player over the age of 30.

READ MORE: What are the most expensive transfers of all time? The 50 highest fees in history

He joined the Saudi Pro League club for a whopping €90m as the richest league in football set about signing the best players in the world.

Casemiro is next on this list following his €70.7m move from Real Madrid to Man Utd in 2022. The Brazilian was 30 years old when he left the Santiago Bernabeu for Old Trafford.

Miralem Pjanic is the fifth-most expensive player over 30. The Bosnia & Herzegovina midfielder was involved in a controversial transfer to Barcelona in 2018 - with Arthur Melo moving the other way. The fee paid for Pjanic was a reported €60m.

The sixth-most expensive player over the age of 30 is Robert Lewandowski. The Poland international left Bayern Munich to join Barcelona for €45m in 2022 after a stellar stint at the Allianz Arena.

Leonardo Bonucci, Kalidou Koulibaly and Paulinho are joint-seventh on this list thanks to their €42m transfers to AC Milan, Chelsea and Guangzhou Evergrande respectively.

Radja Nainggolan completes the top 10.

The 10 most expensive players over 30 of all time