In case you didn’t know, Vinicius Junior is now one of the world’s best footballers.
After a tough start to life at Real Madrid following a high-profile move from Flamengo, the Brazilian winger has blossomed into a seriously good player.
In 2021/22, Vinicius has tormented defenders for fun and also contributed to a high numbers of goals, 21 (12G, 9A) in 25 appearances to be exact.
As a result of his turnaround at Real Madrid, the 21-year-old forward is now ranked as the most valuable footballer on the planet by the CIES Football Observatory.
Their complex algorithm – which also factors in the length of each player’s current contract – has Vinicius even ahead of the enigma that is Erling Haaland, which is something of a surprise.
Let’s take a look at the top 50 in full…
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The 50 most valuable footballers in the world
50. Manuel Locatelli (Juventus) – €69.9m
49. Declan Rice (West Ham United) – €70.5m
48. Kylian Mbappe (Paris Saint-Germain) – €71.5m
47. Jules Kounde (Sevilla) – €73.2m
46. Rodri (Manchester City) – €74.2m
45. Leon Goretzka (Bayern Munich) – €74.8m
44. Eljif Elmas (Napoli) – €75.1m
43. Moussa Diaby (Bayer Leverkusen) – €75.6m
42. Timo Werner (Chelsea) – €76.0m
41. Joshua Kimmich (Bayern Munich) – €76.2m
40. Federico Valverde (Real Madrid) – €76.3m
39. Eder Militao (Real Madrid) – €78.6m
38. Bernardo Silva (Manchester City) – €78.7m
37. Romelu Lukaku (Chelsea) – €79.3m
36. Diogo Jota (Liverpool) – €79.6m
35. Eric Garcia (Barcelona) – €80.6m
34. Gianluigi Donnarumma (Paris Saint-Germain) – €82.0m
33. Joao Cancelo (Manchester City) – €82.9m
32. Marcos Llorente (Atletico Madrid) – €83.9m
31. Federico Chiesa (Juventus) – €86.7m
30. Josko Gvardiol (RB Leipzig) – €87.3m
29. Emile Smith Rowe (Arsenal) – €88.1m
28. Gabriel Jesus (Manchester City) – €88.2m
27. Nicolo Barella (Inter Milan) – €91.6m
26. Ferran Torres (Barcelona) – €93.1m
25. Lautaro Martinez (Inter Milan) – €93.4m
24. Dayot Upamecano (Bayern Munich) – €94.2m
23. Joao Felix (Atletico Madrid) – €95.2m
22. Marcus Rashford (Manchester United) – €98.0m
21. Sergino Dest (Barcelona) – €100.8m
20. Kai Havertz (Chelsea) – €101.2m
19. Jamal Musiala (Bayern Munich) – €101.7m
18. Leroy Sane (Bayern Munich) – €102.4m
17. Bukayo Saka (Arsenal) – €103.0m
16. Reece James (Chelsea) – €108.0m
15. Achraf Hakimi (Paris Saint-Germain) – €108.2m
14. Mason Mount (Chelsea) – €108.9m
13. Trent Alexander-Arnold (Liverpool) – €112.8m
12. Bruno Fernandes (Manchester United) – €113.9m
11. Jadon Sancho (Manchester United) – €115.0m
10. Frenkie de Jong (Barcelona) – €115.2m
9. Pedri (Barcelona) – €118.0m
8. Ruben Dias (Manchester City) – €120.5m
7. Alphonso Davies (Bayern Munich) – €122.3m
6. Jude Bellingham (Borussia Dortmund) – €130.1m
5. Florian Wirtz (Bayer Leverkusen) – €133.0m
4. Mason Greenwood (Manchester United) – €133.9m
3. Erling Haaland (Borussia Dortmund) – €142.5m
2. Phil Foden (Manchester City) – €152.6m
1. Vinicius Junior (Real Madrid) – €166.4m
So, 21 players in total are valued at €100m+, with Vinicius comfortably at the top with an enormous figure of €166.4m next to his name.
Unsurprisingly, Mbappe’s valuation of €72.5m is the largest among players whose contracts are expiring in the summer.
When the French superstar signs his next contract – which could be with PSG, Real Madrid or another member of Europe’s elite – expect him to fly up CIES’ valuation ranking.
