A few weeks ago, he was just another teenager with a very promising future ahead of him.
One World Cup call-up and a handful of five-star performances later, and Ayyoub Bouaddi suddenly finds himself worth more than most footballers could ever dream of.
Despite already being tipped as one to watch before the quadrennial tournament kicked off, few could have predicted just how quickly the France-born midfielder’s stock would rise. Representing Morocco at international level, the young midfielder made headlines after facing Brazil in his country’s opening game of the 2026 World Cup, and the attention has only intensified since then. Scouts are now circling in hopes of prising away from Lille, the club he joined at just 14-years-old and where he eventually made the leap to professional football.
And it appears like one club has finally managed to win the race. According to reports, Bouaddi will spend the 2026-27 season in Manchester City blue, with the Premier League side reportedly prepared to prise him away from Lille for a fee that could reach €100 million. That would make him the most expensive Arab footballer ever and, rather casually, one of the priciest teenagers the sport has ever seen.
To put it in perspective, the only other 18-year-old to move for anything close to that amount was Kylian Mbappé in 2017, when he left Monaco for Paris Saint-Germain in a deal worth €180 million. So while that particular record remains safely out of reach, Bouaddi suddenly finds himself in some pretty serious company.
Within Arab football, though, no one comes close. Here are the four footballers whose transfer records he leapfrogged on his way to the top.
Omar Marmoush (Egypt)
Position: Centre-Forward
From: Eintracht Frankfurt
To: Manchester City
Fee: €75.00M
Achraf Hakimi (Morocco)
Position: Right Back
From: Inter Milan
To: Paris Saint-Germain
Fee: €68.00m
Riyad Mahrez (Algeria)
Position: Right Winger
From: Leicester
To: Manchester City
Fee: €67.80m
Ismael Saibari (Morocco)
Position: Attacking Midfield
From: PSV Eindhoven
To: Bayern Munchen
Fee: €50.00m
All transfer fees listed are according to Transfermarkt.