Vinicius Junior, the second most valuable player at the Qatar World Cup

There are only three days left until the World Cup begins and the boarding passes are printed and ready to go (except for any last-minute injuries). Before the tournament kicks off, CIES has revealed the names of the most valuable players who will be making their mark on the tournament. Thanks to having the most expensive player at the entire World Cup, Bellingham, at an eye-watering €202 million, England ranks as the most valuable squad, with their players reaching a combined total of €1.4 billion.

The podium of the national teams is completed by Brazil and France. Spain, slips into this list as the fourth most valuable team in the tournament with a value of €1.2 billion, ahead of others such as Portugal, Germany, Uruguay and Belgium. Argentina is in eighth position despite being one of the big favourites to win the trophy at the end. The lowest-valued team in the tournament is Costa Rica, reaching only €23 million in value among its 26 players, with an average of less than €1 million for each of them.

The most expensive player at the World Cup

In the list of the most expensive players at the World Cup, Bellingham leads the way. Real Madrid’s winger Vinicius Junior manages to get into second position, just one million behind Bellingham. Mbappé completes the podium with a value of €185 million. Pedri leads the list of Spaniards at a whopping €158 million, fourth in the entire list. Valverde and Courtois lead the list of Uruguay and Belgium and Barcelona midfielder De Jong the highest valued player of the Netherlands.

Time slows down for nobody and looking at Argentina and Portugal the evidence is clear. Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo no longer lead their teams. The most valuable player of the albiceleste is Lautaro Martínez, Portugal’s most expensive footballer is Manchester City’s Ruben Dias.

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