€6.98 billion tops list - Which age has the highest collection of valuable players?

Transfermarkt’s famed market values are renowned across the world and used by various stakeholders in every continent. First established in 2000, market values were introduced with the aim to predict how valuable players are in a free market. By considering various pricing models and factors, Transfermarkt has assigned values to over 82,000 players and they are regularly adjusted across the season in market value updates.

Transfermarkt’s market values are cited regularly by leading media organisations and clubs have highlighted them in discussions with league officials - Juventus famously referred to them in a high-profile disciplinary case. Players have also questioned their valuations and they are a staple within the football community. Age is a significant factor in determining market values as players usually rise in valuation as they gain exposure and experience in football but drop in value as they enter their twilight years. From using our exclusive data, we’ve analysed which age has the highest combined market value - the data extracted was on July 31st.

Which is the most valuable age for footballers?

Transfermarkt only assigns market values to players from their 16th birthday onwards and the oldest player with a valuation is 52-year-old, Kazuyoshi Miura - the second oldest is Cristian Campestrini at 45. From analysing our data, the most valuable age is 25 years old with 6,058 players combining for a total market value of €6.98 billion. That equates to each player having an average market value of 1.15 million with Erling Haaland the most valuable 25 year old at €180m.

As the graphic above illustrates, there is quite a symmetrical pattern across the valuations of each age with 26 years old the second most valuable (€6.24b) and 24 years old completing the top three (€6.12b). Overall, six ages eclipse the €5 billion threshold (22-27) and this age range could widely be considered as when players’ valuations are at their highest based on market trends. Every age from 18-36 had a combined valuation of over €1 billion with Barcelona’s Lamine Yamal (18) currently the most valuable player in the world at €200m.