PSG's 25 most expensive transfers of all time

FT Desk

• Updated: 25 Oct 2025 05:04 CDT
• 13 min read

News

Paris Saint-Germain have established themselves as major players in Europe over the last decade, largely thanks to their enormous transfer spending.

PSG boast one of the biggest net spends in world football since the arrival of their Qatari owners in 2011, and their immense investment finally culminated in an elusive Champions League triumph in 2025 following a stellar season under Luis Enrique.

Below, we run through the 25 most expensive PSG signings in history.

25. Nuno Mendes - €38m (Sporting CP, 2022)

What seemed like a big investment at the time now looks an excellent piece of business, with Nuno Mendes undoubtedly the best left-back in the game at present.

Luis Enrique has given the Portuguese the freedom of the left flank, with Mendes operating as much a winger and forward as much as a defender. Somehow, he manages to pull it off.

24. Lucas Moura - €40m (Sao Paulo, 2013)

Seemed a real coup when PSG beat Manchester United to his signature in a deal that further underlined their growing credentials as a superpower.

Lucas showed glimpses of brilliance but did not do enough to justify his lavish fee.

23. Leandro Paredes - €40m (Zenit St Petersburg, 2019)

The less said about Paredes the better. He arrived as a mid-season signing but failed to offer PSG any type of solidarity in the midfield, with his passing often woeful.

Ultimately sold to Roma in 2023 for a €5.7m fee that reflected his dire performance.

22. Lucas Chevalier - €40m (Lille, 2025)

Arrived at PSG as Gianluigi Donnarumma’s replacement and has big boots to fill.

No PSG goalkeeper will be as scrutinised as the young Frenchman.

21. Willian Pacho - €40m (Eintracht Frankfurt, 2024)

A masterstroke of a signing. No one had heard too much about Pacho when he arrived at PSG from Frankfurt, yet the Ecuador centre-back provided the combativity in defence that Luis Enrique’s side had previously lacked. A vital but often unsung part of the Champions League-winning squad.

20. Vitinha - €41.5m (Porto, 2022)

A failed spell with Wolves wasn’t about to stop PSG spending big on Vitinha – and they’ll be glad that was the case.

The Portuguese is one of the world’s finest players, finishing 3rd in the 2025 Ballon d’Or to underline his incredible rise at Parc des Princes.

19. Thiago Silva – €42m (AC Milan, 2012)

One of the first wave of big-name signings to grace PSG, Thiago Silva succeeded where many others had failed as he became an icon in the City of Lights.

The centre-back ranks eighth in Les Parisiens’ all-time appearance list and will be remembered fondly by all in the French capital for his committed and consistently excellent showings.

18. Javier Pastore - €42m (Palermo, 2011)

The transfer that put PSG on the map. QSI beat several top European sides to the signing of ‘El Flaco’ in a move that proved just how serious they were about making their project a successful one.

Pastore was a graceful footballer whose style never quite meshed with the hustle-and-bustle of Ligue 1, but he had some memorable moments, such as scoring against Chelsea in the Champions League.

17. Bradley Barcola - €45m (Lyon, 2023)

The arrival of Barcola from Lyon marked a shift in PSG’s transfer policy as they moved away from world stars to focus on young French talent.

Barcola might frustrate fans with his erratic finishing at times, but he’s a persistent danger to opposing teams.

16. Lucas Hernandez - €45m (Bayern Munich, 2023)

The signing of Hernandez is not a deal that has worked out in the way that PSG might have wished, with a serious knee problem hindering the France star last season.

Nevertheless, he provides strong depth in a squad that is otherwise lacking experience off the bench.

15. David Luiz - €49.5m (Chelsea, 2014)

PSG made a surprise move to sign David Luiz during the 2014 World Cup, going big on a centre-back known to be erratic.

Alongside compatriots Thiago Silva and Marquinhos, he did little to shake that reputation and returned to Chelsea a couple of years later at a significantly smaller fee.

14. Mauro Icardi - €50m (Inter, 2020)

Signed as the player who was supposed to feed off the chances created by Kylian Mbappe and Neymar, it never worked for Icardi in Ligue 1.

After scoring 12 league goals in his first season, he subsequently netted only 11 more in the two campaigns that followed before being dumped to Galatasaray. An expensive flop.

13. Desire Doue - €50m (Rennes, 2024)

The Ligue 1 season had already started by the time PSG moved to sign the highly rated Doue from Rennes in the summer of 2024.

Doue embraced the pressure of playing in Paris, perfectly fitting into the free-flowing style of Luis Enrique’s side and became a world-leading performer in the process.

12. Ousmane Dembele - €50m (Barcelona, 2023)

Signing Dembele was a risk for PSG, but it’s one that’s paid off for both the player and the club.

He arrived with the reputation of being injury-prone and erratic. By the summer of 2025, he had cast off both claims, securing the Ballon d’Or after a stellar season in which he found his shooting boots.

11. Manuel Ugarte - €60m (Sporting CP, 2023)

After initial promise in Paris, Ugarte’s technical weaknesses became too frustrating for Luis Enrique and he was sold to Manchester United after just a season.

PSG made a €10m loss on the Uruguay international, who subsequently struggled to return to his best at Old Trafford.

PSG's 10 most biggest signings ever

10. Ilya Zabarnyi - €63m (from Bournemouth, 2025)

Bournemouth’s backline was dismantled in 2025, with Milos Kerkez, Dean Huijsen and Ilya Zabarnyi all leaving the club following a stellar campaign under Andoni Iraola.

Despite interest from several Premier League clubs, Zabarnyi joined PSG for €63m, and he became the most expensive centre-back to ever join a Ligue 1 club in the process.

The Ukrainian made a total of 86 first-team appearances during a successful stint at Bournemouth, and he arrived in France as a possible long-term successor to PSG legend Marquinhos.

Current ETV

Ilya Zabarnyi

D (C)

PSG

Ilya Zabarnyi

D (C)

PSG

€48.2M

ETV Range

€43.3M - €53M

View full profile

9. Angel Di Maria - €63m (from Man Utd, 2015)

An expensive flop at Man Utd, PSG swooped in to take advantage of Angel Di Maria’s unhappiness in the Premier League by snapping him up just over 12 months after he had played a vital role in helping Real Madrid win the Champions League.

While Man Utd failed to get the best out of Di Maria, PSG succeeded, and the Argentine became one of their most consistently effective players over the course of his stay at the club.

Approaching the twilight of his career, Di Maria joined Juventus in 2022, before returning to Benfica. In total, he made 295 appearances for PSG, scoring 92 goals and winning 15 trophies.

8. Edinson Cavani - €64.5m (from Napoli, 2013)

When PSG signed Edinson Cavani, he was regarded as one of the deadliest strikers in Europe, and he arrived in response to Monaco’s capture of Radamel Falcao from Atletico Madrid.

However, Cavani’s potential wasn’t fully exploited in Paris as he was often deployed as a left winger, with Zlatan Ibrahimovic taking centre stage as the club’s preferred striker.

Despite this, he briefly became PSG’s all-time record goalscorer with 200 strikes in 301 appearances, before being eclipsed by Kylian Mbappe, and he remains one of the club’s best ever players.

7. Goncalo Ramos - €64.5m (from Benfica, 2023)

PSG splashed the cash on Benfica star Goncalo Ramos in the summer of 2023 as they searched for a new goalscoring attacker following the departures of both Lionel Messi and Neymar.

Ramos had emerged as one of the most exciting young strikers in Europe during his time at Benfica and he notably scored 27 goals across all competitions during his final season at the club.

However, he only registered 14 goals in his debut campaign at PSG, and Ousmane Dembele took his starting place during his second season.

6. Joao Neves – €65.9m (Benfica, 2024)

Being a highly rated young player does not necessarily translate to superstardom, but Joao Neves finds himself on that route after making the move from Benfica to PSG.

Neves had caught the attention of numerous European clubs, so there was some surprise he moved to Paris, thought to be a waning force at that time after seeing Kylian Mbappe leave on a free transfer to Real Madrid.

It proved a masterstroke. Neves brought balance to the midfield, allowing the qualities of Vitinha and Fabian Ruiz to come to the fore. Indeed, he even showed some offensive potential that was previously hidden during his stint at Benfica.

A stellar first season in Paris ended with the Champions League title, with his role in this run honoured by a 19th-placed finish in the Ballon d’Or.

5. Achraf Hakimi - €68m (from Inter, 2021)

Despite the financial impact of the COVID-19 pandemic hitting most of Europe hard, PSG powered on with marquee signings and they signed Inter Milan superstar Achraf Hakimi from for €68m in 2021.

Following a stellar loan spell at Borussia Dortmund, the Morocco defender played a pivotal role in Inter’s first Serie A triumph in over 10 years during his only season at the club - notching 17 goal contributions in the Italian top flight.

Hakimi then arrived at PSG as one of the most highly-rated defenders in world football, and he helped the French giants win the Champions League for the first time in their history in 2024-25.

4. Khvicha Kvaratskhelia - €70m (from Napoli, 2025)

PSG made one of the biggest signings of the 2025 January transfer window when they pulled off an exciting deal to sign Khvicha Kvaratskhelia from Napoli.

The Georgian winger had enjoyed a meteoric rise to stardom since his arrival in Serie A and he guided Napoli to their first Scudetto triumph since 1990 during his debut season at the club.

However, Napoli finished 10th during Kvaratskhelia’s second campaign and the Italian outfit reluctantly opted to sell their talisman in January 2025, with his contract winding down. He played a key role in PSG’s aforementioned Champions League victory, despite only arriving mid-season.

3. Randal Kolo Muani - €95m (from Eintracht Frankfurt, 2023)

Just one year after joining Eintracht Frankfurt on a free transfer from Nantes, Randal Kolo Muani signed for PSG for a whopping €95m after an impressive campaign in Germany.

The Frenchman scored 23 goals and provided 17 assists during his sole season at Frankfurt, while he also established himself as a regular in the France international set-up after impressing at the Qatar World Cup.

Despite this, his first season at PSG was a difficult one and he was sent on loan to Juventus in January 2025 after falling out of favour under Luis Enrique. Kolo Muani then joined Tottenham Hotspur on another loan deal six months later.

2. Kylian Mbappe - €180m (from Monaco, 2018)

Kylian Mbappe initially arrived at PSG in 2017 on a season-long loan deal from Monaco, but the deal was structured in such a way that it would become permanent for €180m if the French giants avoided relegation.

Mbappe subsequently became the most expensive teenager in football history in 2018 and he soon established himself as a global superstar at the Parc des Princes.

He scored an incredible 256 goals in 308 games for PSG, becoming their all-time top goalscorer in the process, and he won 15 trophies across seven seasons at the club. After a lengthy transfer saga, Mbappe left PSG to join Real Madrid on a free transfer in 2024.

1. Neymar - €222m (from Barcelona, 2017)

The transfer that shook the world. Nobody thought a deal of such magnitude was possible, but Neymar moved to PSG for €222m in 2017, with the Ligue 1 side matching the minimum fee release clause in his Barcelona contract.

He became the most expensive footballer ever and he notched just shy of 200 goal contributions in 173 games for the Parisians.

However, injury problems curtailed Neymar’s career at PSG and this was ultimately the reason why he failed to win the Champions League or the Ballon d’or during his time at the club. He was sold to Al-Hilal for €90m in 2023.

The 25 most expensive PSG signings of all time

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