*Values based on each players most recent transfer fee!
8. Wales
It’s fair to say without £86m star Gareth Bale, Wales wouldn’t be near this list. The Real Madrid forward accounts for 63% of the squad’s total value, he’s worth almost £20m MORE than Turkey’s entire 23 and, if you were to combine the Poland,
Romania, Hungary, Albania and Ukraine squads, you still couldn’t buy him!
TOTAL COST: £136.1m
7. Italy
Gone are the days when Serie A destroys world-record transfer fees every season – their priciest star is keeper Gianluigi Buffon, who moved to Juventus for £39.7m in 2001. Juve have sent more players to the tournament than any other Italian team, but only half of those guys are Italian!
TOTAL COST: £153.6m
6. Portugal
Just like Wales, Portugal owe their inclusion largely to one man – Cristiano Ronaldo. The £80m Real splashed on C-Ron makes up for half of Portugal’s combined value, boosted by Bayern Munich’s recent £28m deal for Renato Sanches!
TOTAL COST: £160.7m
5. Spain
Get this – leaving out players like Fernando Torres and Juan Mata means Vicente Del Bosque’s squad is nearly 50% CHEAPER than those picked for the World Cup two years ago. Cesc Fabregas is their priciest player at £30m – that would get you 12 of Ukraine’s most expensive star, Denys Boyko!
TOTAL COST: £177.7m
4. France
Reckon you can guess who cost the most in France’s squad? Weirdly, it’s Man. City’s £42m centre-back Eliaquim Mangala! Just imagine if this was calculated AFTER the tournament, though – Paul Pogba, N’Golo Kante and Antoine Griezmann could rack up a further £150m in transfer fees this summer!
TOTAL COST: £183.1m
3. England
In £44m man Raheem Sterling England have the fourth-most expensive player at the tournament – although The Three Lions’ second top transfer was the £30m Man. United paid for Wayne Rooney – 12 years ago! Interestingly, five of Roy’s boys came from academies and didn’t cost a penny!
TOTAL COST: £189.7m
2. Germany
Germany have added considerable pounds to their World Cup-winning squad – and we’re not just talking about Bastian Schweinsteiger’s waistline! This group is £100m more valuable and contains yet another Prem ace as its most costly star – Arsenal’s £42.5m midfield maestro, Mesut Ozil!
TOTAL COST: £264.5m
1. Belgium
Costing nearly one whole Kevin De Bruyne more than Germany, Belgium’s 12-strong Prem outfit have an average player cost of £13.9m – greater than the sum of Poland’s entire squad. They’re FIFA’s highest ranked European team – and that explains a lot!
TOTAL COST: £318.9m
Did you know? The total cost of the 552 players at this summer’s European Championships is a whopping £2.2bn!
If you like this, then read more in this issue of Match of the Day Magazine!
This issue looks at the race for the golden boot at the Euros!
It’s got the ultimate guide to penalties too!
Plus there are 10 totally sick posters with every issue!
You can get your copy of Match of the Day in shops now!
Click here to go to the Match of the Day Magazine website!
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