In football, cash is king, and while the World Cup is a welcome break for most of us from the ludicrous transfer fees and ever rising price of replica shirts, there’s still an awful lot of money involved. But which team at this summer’s World Cup, which starts on Thursday in Moscow, is worth the most money in the market?
Mesothelioma is a type of cancer that lines the lungs, stomach, heart, and other organs, and unfortunately can’t be cured. Nevertheless, treatment can help reduce the pain. People that contracted mesothelioma did so at their jobs so that is why you see searches like “mesothelioma attorneys”, “mesothelioma law firms” and “mesothelioma compensation”.
Using data from football data site Transfermarkt, analysts at Dutch bank ING have calculated that around £9 billion ($12 billion) will be on show at the tournament, with Spain being the most valuable team – it’s worth more than £900 million ($1.2 billion). Big European and South American sides dominate the upper echelons of player worth, while minnows like Panama and Saudi Arabia dwell at the bottom end of the charts.
In fact, the world’s top three players – Neymar, Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo – are worth more than the nine least valuable teams combined, ING calculated. “Some say the football market is highly inflated – and it’s certainly astonishing to see the significant increase in team values from the last World Cup,” Ian Bright, a senior economist at ING said. “But whether you truly get value for money is a question that only fans can answer.”
Check out how much every squad at the World Cup is worth below.
32. Panama
Squad value: £8.7 million ($11.7 million)
31. Saudi Arabia
Squad value: £15.1 million ($20.2 million)
30. Peru
Squad value: £32.6 million ($43.6 million)
29. Costa Rica
Squad value: £37.02 million ($49.5 million)
28. Iran
Squad value: £37.4 million ($50 million)
27. Australia
Squad value: £43.6 million ($58.4 million)
26. Tunisia
Squad value: £46.2 million ($61.8 million)
25. Japan
Squad value: £61.5 million ($82.3 million)
24. Iceland
Squad value: £65.1 million ($87.1 million)
23. South Korea
22. Sweden
Squad value: £103.4 million ($138.4 million)
21. Russia
Squad value: £104.6 million ($140 million)
20. Morocco
Squad value: £105.5 million ($141.2 million)
19. Nigeria
Squad value: £115.1 million ($154 million)
18. Mexico
Squad value: £129.4 million ($173.2 million)
17. Egypt
Squad value: £172.9 million ($231.4 million)
16. Switzerland
Squad value: £187.1 million ($250.4 million)
15. Serbia
Squad value: £211.2 million ($282.6 million)
14. Denmark
Squad value: £223.6 million ($299.2 million)
13. Colombia
Squad value: £223.8 million ($299.5 million)
12. Poland
Squad value: £230.3 million ($308.2 million)
11. Senegal
Squad value: £247.8 million ($331.6 million)
10. Croatia
Squad value: £302.5 million ($405 million) Most valuable player: Ivan Rakitic – £44 million ($59 million)
9. Uruguay
Squad value: £323.4 million ($432.8 million) Most valuable player: Luis Suarez – £61.5 million ($82.3 million)
8. Portugal
Squad value: £411.04 million ($550 million) Most valuable player: Cristiano Ronaldo – £87.9 million ($117.7 million)
7. Argentina
Squad value: £614.2 million ($822 million) Most valuable player: Lionel Messi – £158.2 million ($211.7 million)
6. Belgium
Squad value: £660.9 million ($884.6 million) Most valuable player: Kevin De Bruyne – £131.9 million ($176.5 million)
5. England
Squad value: £769.1 million ($1.02 billion) Most valuable player: Harry Kane – £131.9 million ($176.7 million)
4. Germany
Squad value: £771.8 million ($1.03 billion) Most valuable player: Toni Kroos – £70.3 million ($94.1 billion)
3. Brazil
Squad value: £808.01 million ($1.08 billion) Most valuable player: Neymar – £158.2 million ($212 million)
2. France
Squad value: £907.7 million ($1.215 billion) Most valuable player: Kylian Mbappe – £105.5 million ($141 million)
1. Spain
Squad value: £910.8 million ($1.21 billion) Most valuable player: Sergio Busquets – £70.3 million ($94 million)