Which clubs have the most valuable squads in the world?

Between the Lines returns with a breakdown of the top eight, according to Transfermarkt valuations, including analysis and insight into the how and why.

So, can anyone match the superstars of Real Madrid in terms of value? And do Arsenal really have the highest-value squad among Premier League clubs? Read on to find out.

8th: Manchester United, £766m

Despite a club-record low 15th-placed Premier League finish last season, Manchester United have the eighth-most valuable squad in the world at £766m, according to Transfermarkt.

Having added Bryan Mbeumo, Matheus Cunha and Benjamin Sesko to their attack this summer, almost half of that figure comes from their forward players, who are valued at a combined £352m.

The new signings offered glimpses of how they could transform Ruben Amorim’s attack in Sunday’s narrow defeat to Arsenal but there is still a need for more quality elsewhere in the squad.

Sky Sports pundit Gary Neville said they “unequivocally” need to sign a new goalkeeper. Their current options, Andre Onana, Altay Bayindir and Tom Heaton, are valued at only £29m.

Their midfielders, meanwhile, have less than half the value of their forwards, at £158m, further emphasising the need to bring other parts of their squad up to the level of their front line.

7th: Liverpool, £907m

Liverpool were outstanding in winning the Premier League title last season under Arne Slot but they have to settle for seventh place in the most valuable squads list.

Florian Wirtz has added a huge chunk of value following his arrival from Bayer Leverkusen for a British record £116.5m. Transfermarkt value the 22-year-old slightly higher than that, at £121m. But many of Liverpool’s existing key players are declining in value due to age.

Mohamed Salah was valued at a high of £130.8m earlier in his Liverpool career but at 33, despite producing his best season yet last term and signing a new contract, his value is down at £43m.

Like Salah, Virgil van Dijk, Alisson Becker and Andrew Robertson, aged 34, 32 and 31 respectively, have also declined in value as Liverpool continue their work to refresh their squad, and increase its value, through recruitment this summer and beyond.

6th: Barcelona, £976m

LALIGA champions Barcelona come in at sixth, thanks in large part to their 18-year-old sensation Lamine Yamal, who ranks as the highest-value player in the world at £173m, meaning he accounts for 18 per cent of the squad’s total value of £976m.

Barcelona have another high-value asset in Pedri, who, like Yamal, is a product of their La Masia youth academy. The 22-year-old midfielder is valued at the same level as Liverpool’s Wirtz at £121m.

5th: Chelsea, £1.01bn

Chelsea are the first of five clubs with a squad value of over £1bn.

Their high valuation is largely down to huge transfer spending by the club’s owners, who have increased the value of their squad by signing young, high-potential signings. And a lot of them.

Since the summer of 2022, Chelsea have spent nearly twice as much as any other Premier League club on transfers, their total of £1.52bn dwarfing the next-highest total of £861m, by Manchester United.

The total spent is far higher than the value of their current squad but it is worth noting Chelsea have made by far the most of any Premier League club in sales in the timeframe, allowing them to balance the books as they continue to reshape their squad in the interests of increasing its value, quality and potential.

4th: Paris Saint-Germain, £1.03bn

It is only a year since Paris Saint-Germain lost their prized asset Kylian Mbappe to Real Madrid but the club have gone from strength to strength, winning the Champions League last season and developing an extremely high-value squad under Luis Enrique.

Ousmane Dembele is now their main man but his Transfermarkt valuation of £77.7m is matched by two of his team-mates in Khvicha Kvaratskhelia, who has thrived since joining from Napoli, and Desire Doue, who has emerged as one of the best young players in Europe.

3rd: Manchester City, £1.12bn

Manchester City are rebuilding again under Pep Guardiola but their squad remains one of the most valuable in Europe at £1.12bn.

There is excitement about new recruits Tijjani Reijnders and Rayan Cherki after their goalscoring debuts in Saturday’s 4-0 win over Wolves but the most valuable player in their squad, according to Transfermarkt, is unsurprisingly Erling Haaland.

The striker, who signed a new 10-year contract at the Etihad Stadium in January and has scored 126 goals in 147 games for the club, is valued at £155m by Transfermarkt, making him one of the most valuable players in the world.

It also makes him roughly £60m more valuable than any other Manchester City player, although Pep Guardiola’s squad does contain numerous other high-value players, including six others valued at over £50m.

2nd: Arsenal, £1.14bn

It is 21 years since Arsenal’s last title win but their progress under Mikel Arteta is reflected by a soaring squad value which puts them second in the world and top among Premier League clubs.

Arsenal’s squad has roughly doubled in value since Arteta’s appointment in 2019, rising from around £540m to an all-time high of £1.14bn, thanks to an overhaul in personnel and an emphasis on youth typified by the talismanic Bukayo Saka, whose value has risen from £6m to £129.5m in the last six years.

Arsenal’s squad planning has left them with a group of players who are mostly either in or approaching their peak years. Leandro Trossard and Christian Norgaard are their only outfielders over 30.

Their academy has played a huge role in building the value of their squad, first with Saka and now with Ethan Nwaneri and Myles Lewis-Skelly, who are valued at roughly £48m and £39m respectively at only 18 years old, with optimism that the 15-year-old Max Dowman could be next to follow Saka’s footsteps.

The emergence of Saka, Nwaneri and Lewis-Skelly, all of whom cost the club nothing in transfer fees, has helped give Arsenal a Transfermarkt squad value £316m higher than its £826m cost.

No other Premier League club even comes close in terms of building value relative to squad cost, with Manchester United and Chelsea at the opposite end of the scale, their squad costs considerably higher than their current valuations, leaving them with negative differences.

1st: Real Madrid, £1.21bn

Real Madrid finished a disappointing season without silverware last term as Carlo Ancelotti made way for Xabi Alonso in the dugout, but it is no surprise to see them top for squad value at £1.21bn.

Their Galactico-filled squad features three of the five most valuable players in the world, with Jude Bellingham and Mbappe each valued at £155m – behind only Barcelona’s Yamal (£173m) – while Vinicius Junior (£147m) is not far behind them and Haaland (also £155m).

They continue to target big names, with Trent Alexander-Arnold the latest superstar arrival, valued at £64.6m by Transfermarkt, while also signing leading young players such as Dean Huijsen, whose valuation of £51.7m is likely to grow at only 20, ensuring the squad is well placed to retain its value in the years ahead.

Final rankings

Last week’s Between the Lines

Between the Lines, a weekly Sky Sports strand revealing the data behind football’s biggest stories, launched last week with a look at how the Opta and Sky Sports supercomputers’ predicted Premier League tables compared. Surprises included!

Sky Sports to show 215 live Premier League games this season

Starting this season, Sky Sports’ Premier League coverage is increasing from 128 matches to at least 215 games exclusively live.

And 80 per cent of all televised Premier League games this season will be shown live on Sky Sports.