French midfielder signs for Manchester United for $116.4 million
French football star Paul Pogba became the most expensive signing in history Tuesday when Manchester United agreed a 105 million euro ($116.4 million) deal with Italy's Juventus.
The 23-year-old left the English club on a free transfer in the summer of 2012. In addition to the initial fee, there will be bonuses related to his performance on the pitch.
The midfielder's deal surpassed the money paid for Real Madrid duo Gareth Bale and Cristiano Ronaldo -- previously the world's largest signings. Bale joined from Tottenham Hotspur for 101 million euros ($112.1 million) in 2013 while Ronaldo signed from United for 94 million euro ($104.3 million) in 2009.
Pogba also broke Zinedine Zidane's former record as the most expensive French player.
According to the German football database website Transfermarkt, the 10 most expensive signings in football history were:
Player
To
From
Season
Transfer fee (million euro)
1. Paul Pogba (France)
Manchester United
Juventus
2016-2017
105
2. Gareth Bale (Wales)
Real Madrid
Tottenham
2013-2014
101
3. Cristiano Ronaldo (Portugal)
Real Madrid
Manchester United
2009-2010
94
4. Gonzalo Higuain (Argentina)
Juventus
Napoli
2016-2017
90
5. Neymar (Brazil)
Barcelona
Santos
2013-2014
88.2
6. Luis Suarez (Uruguay)
Barcelona
Liverpool
2014-2015
81.7
7. Angel Di Maria (Argentina)
Manchester United
Real Madrid
2014-2015
75
8. James Rodriguez (Colombia)
Real Madrid
Monaco
2014-2015
75
9. Kevin De Bruyne (Belgium)
Manchester City
Wolfsburg
2015-2016
74
10. Zinedine Zidane (France)
Real Madrid
Juventus
2001-2002
73.5
