Who is the most expensive English player of all time?

There’s a certain allure to a talented footballer from England, given it’s home to the world’s first match and largely considered the birthplace of the game.

Allure and football predictably mix into a strong cash-flavoured cocktail, so it won’t surprise you to learn that some of the most expensive footballers in history grew up on these shores.

But who tops the list of the most expensive English player of all time? Keep scrolling, there are some eye-watering sums ahead…

Who is the most expensive English player of all time?

It’s a tie! BothDeclan RiceandJack Grealisharrived atArsenalandManchester Cityrespectively for base fees of £100million.

Rice – ranked second inFourFourTwo’slist of the best defensive midfieldersright now – potentially takes the crown on goal difference as his 2023 dealincluded £5million in unspecified add-ons, but what’s a few million quid between friends?

Either way, you can be sure it’s a sore point for anyRepublic of Irelandfans, as both men turned out for the Boys in Green in their youth before switching allegiances back to their country of birth – what a coup that could have been.

Who held the all-time record transfer fee for an English player before Rice and Grealish?

Previous to Grealish putting pen to paper in 2021, the most expensive English player wasHarry Maguirethanks to his £80million move fromLeicester CitytoManchester Unitedin 2019 – stilla world recordfor a central defender.

There may be some question marks over the fee, given thatLiverpoolstarVirgil van Dijkwent for£5million cheapera year earlier, but there’s no doubting Maguire has deliveredEnglandand the Red Devils some incredible moments in the intervening years.

Notable mentions go toHarry Kane– ranked seventh inFourFourTwo’slist of the best Premier League strikersof all time – andJude Bellingham, who headed to heavy-hittersBayern MunichandReal Madrid, respectively, in the summer of 2023, but neither troubled Grealish nor Rice’s initial fees.

However, Bellingham – currently a 10/1 shot tolift the 2025 Ballon d’Or– could wind up being the most expensive when the dust settles, with Los Blancos’ initial outlay of £88.5millionpotentially rising as high as £115millionwith add-ons. They’d have to be some pretty outlandish clauses for him not to be in with a shout of hitting them.

The full list of the top 10 most expensive English footballers of all time