The most expensive football managers of all time: New Man Utd boss Ruben Amorim in 7th…

Football teams have long invested heavily in the world’s top players, but they are now beginning to spend heavily on elite managers.

Even though they don’t always have the desired effect, elite managers have the power to turn a team around and take them to success.

Six of the ten deals on this list are with Premier League clubs, and we’ve looked at the most costly manager payments.

Note that the numbers include any possible extras or fees that cover the manager’s backroom employees.

10. £6.8 million for Jose Mourinho

Mourinho became one of the world’s top managers after winning trophies at Porto, Chelsea, and Inter Milan.

In the summer of 2010, Real Madrid announced their plan to sign the Portuguese coach, but they declined to activate the £13.6 million release clause in his Inter contract.

Following a meeting between Real Madrid president Florentino Perez and his Inter colleague Massimo Moratti, a £6.8 million deal was ultimately struck.

Before winning La Liga in 2011–12, the self-described “Special One” won a Copa del Rey title in his first season at Real Madrid. However, he was fired following a third season without a trophy.

¡LA LIGA DE LOS RÉCORDS! 🏆

2 de mayo de 2012.

Hace exactamente once años, el Madrid de Mourinho conquistaba una liga de leyenda.

📹: @realmadrid

pic.twitter.com/XJgHT6L1SH

— Madrid Sports (@MadridSports_) May 2, 2023

9. £8.4 million for Ruben Amorim

Even though Amorim had only been a senior manager for three months, he was able to persuade Sporting CP to hire him in March 2020 for £8.4 million.

The manager ended Sporting’s 19-year league title drought in 2020–21, proving that the costly risk was a wise one.

Prior to winning another Primeira Liga in the 2023–2024 season, he had won back-to-back Taca da Liga titles in 2020–2021 and 2021–2022.

The manager has a 71.4% win rate overall, winning 165 games and drawing 33 of the 231 games he directed for Sporting CP.

8. £8.8 million for Brendan Rodgers

In his first stint at Celtic, Rodgers won back-to-back domestic trebles in the 2016–17 and 2017–18 seasons, filling his trophy cabinet.

Although Celtic was eager to keep the Northern Irishman, in February 2019 they accepted a proposal of £8.8 million from Leicester City.

He added the FA Cup and the Community Shield to Leicester’s trophy cabinet and helped them secure consecutive fifth-place finishes in the 2020–21 and 2021–22 seasons.

But things went downhill in his fourth season and the manager was sacked in April 2023, shortly before the Foxes were relegated to the Championship.

7. £9.24 million for Ruben Amorim

His second appearance on this list, Amorim left Sporting CP in November 2024 and signed a two-and-a-half-year contract at Manchester United.

United triggered the £8.4million release clause in his contract and also paid an extra £840,000 to secure his early release from a 30-day notice period that would have tied him to the Portuguese club until the start of December.

Following his final Sporting match, the 39-year-old declared, “I feel ready for the new challenge.” “I’m not naive; I know that things will be difficult and quite different, but I think I’m ready.

“I am now at ease. I can focus on my new job, and I’m looking forward to starting.”

6. £9.4 million Arne Slot

In summer 2024, Slot became the front-runner for the Liverpool position as Xabi Alonso chose to remain at Bayer Leverkusen.

The 46-year-old led Feyenoord to an Eredivisie championship and the KNVB Cup during his three incredibly successful seasons there.

An initial compensation cost of £7.7 million was agreed upon by Liverpool and Feyenoord; however, with possible add-ons, that amount might rise to £9.4 million.

Being the first manager of Liverpool to win eight of his first ten Premier League games, he has had an incredible start to his career.

5. £10 million for Enzo Maresca

Maresca led Leicester City to the Championship title in the 2023–2024 season after working under Pep Guardiola at Manchester City.

Chelsea decided to pay the Foxes a £10 million compensation fee after determining that the 44-year-old would be the best manager to succeed Mauricio Pochettinho.

In September 2024, he was named Premier League Manager of the Month for overseeing a successful start to life in west London.

“We have the best preparation for games,” Levi Colwill remarked. “We enter games knowing exactly what we will do. We have videos. Additionally, as I mentioned, you can ask him [Maresca] anything you need to know, and he will provide you with the answers.

“You can talk to him about why he’s doing that, and I believe that’s what makes him an excellent manager and why he will lead the team to new heights.”

4. £10.2 million for Vincent Kompany

In 2024, Bayern Munich lost out on a number of their top managerial targets, including as Ralf Rangnick, Julian Nagelsmann, and Xabi Alonso.

After leading Burnley to the Championship title in 2022–2023 but failing to keep them in the Premier League the following season, they turned their focus to Kompany.

Burnley originally valued the 38-year-old at £17 million, but they eventually agreed to accept Bayern’s bid of £10.2 million.

Many people were surprised by the appointment, but Kompany has begun to allay his sceptics by starting the Bundesliga with a bang.

26 – Vincent Kompany has earned 26 points in his first 10 Bundesliga games with FC Bayern Munich – a joint-record after the first 10 games in the competition by a FCB manager, along with Pep Guardiola in 2013 and Branko Zebec in 1968 (converted to 3 points per game). Footprints. pic.twitter.com/2KFKNhhL0g

— OptaFranz (@OptaFranz) November 9, 2024

3. £13.3 million for Andre Villas-Boas

After leading Porto to both the domestic double and the Europa League trophy in the 2010–11 season, Villas-Boas was called the “next Jose Mourinho.”

The Portuguese coach followed in his countryman’s footsteps by moving from Porto to Chelsea, which activated his contract’s £13.3 million release clause.

But after only nine months, he was fired because he couldn’t duplicate Mourinho’s success at Stamford Bridge.

Roberto Di Matteo was then signed by Chelsea, and at the end of the 2011–12 season, he achieved a historic FA Cup and Champions League double.

2. £21.5 million for Graham Potter

Potter’s work with Brighton & Hove Albion garnered him a lot of praise, and he introduced an appealing football style at the Amex Stadium.

Chelsea co-owners Todd Boehly and Behdad Eghbali were similarly impressed with the 49-year-old, and in September 2022 they appointed him as Thomas Tuchel’s replacement.

The precise amount was £21.5 million, but initial reports said Chelsea had activated a £15 million release clause in his Brighton contract.

However, he struggled in west London and only won 12 of his 31 games as the Blues’ manager, failing to live up to the price tag.

1. £21.7 million for Julian Nagelsmann

Nagelsmann established himself as one of the most talented young coaches in the world throughout his tenures with Hoffenheim and RB Leipzig.

In the summer of 2021, Bayern Munich paid £21.7 million to acquire the 33-year-old, making him the most costly manager in history.

He won two DFL-Super Cups at Munich and a Bundesliga title, but his poor performance led to his dismissal in March 2023.

At the conclusion of the 2023–24 season, Nagelsmann was offered a new contract with the German national team, but he turned down Bayern’s attempt to rehire him.