Güler 14th, Endrick 9th & Yamal 4th – Most valuable U21 stars in the Champions League

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€180m top spot 

The Champions League is back in a brand new format with the best players in the world still competing to win the ultimate prize in club football. The group stages have been replaced with a 36-team league that means each side playing eight games rather than six as they attempt to reach the knockout stages. 

The new league phase kicked off on Tuesday night with holders Real Madrid securing a 3-1 win over Stuttgart. Madrid were crowned champions of Europe for the 15th time after beating Borussia Dortmund 2-0 at Wembley in the final. Carlo Ancelotti’s men will be amongst the favourites this season alongside Manchester City and Bayern Munich. The Champions League is the most prestigious club tournament and it will feature some of the best young talent. And based on Transfermarkt’s renowned market values, we’ve analysed the most valuable U21 players participating in the Champions League this season. 

Jude Bellingham is the joint-most valuable player in the world at €180 million alongside Kylian Mbappé, Vinicius Jr and Erling Haaland. And the Real Madrid midfielder is, therefore, the most valuable U21 player in the Champions League this season. Two German superstars rank second and third with Florian Wirtz and Jamal Musiala both valued at €130m – Transfermarkt ranks players with the same value based on age and Wirtz is a few weeks younger. 

 Lamine Yamal has enjoyed an incredible 2024 and the Barcelona star is the most valuable teenager in the world and takes fourth place in this list. Bellingham is joined by two Real Madrid teammates – Eduardo Camavinga and Endrick – in the top ten and there’s surprisingly no English Premier League players. Manchester City’s new signing Savinho in 12th place while Benfica’s Antonio Silva is the only star from outside the top five leagues.