Since the Bosman ruling in 1995, footballers have never travelled the globe as much as in the last five years. In its latest report, the CIES Football Observatory counted all players expatriated from their home countries and playing in the 135 leagues worldwide. Unsurprisingly, Brazil ranks first. The "country of football" has 1,418 expatriate players, a number up 13% compared to 2020 (1,252). Just behind are the two most recent world champion countries: France and Argentina. While Argentina will have 989 expatriates worldwide in 2025 (+28%), France has seen the most spectacular increase outside of the two South American countries. In 2025, France will have 1,189 expatriates, an increase of 46% since 2020! In the top ten is a third South American country, Colombia, an African nation, Nigeria, and five additional European ones: England (notably due to the strong presence of English players in other British associations), Spain, Germany, Serbia and Croatia.
Brief
In its latest report, the CIES Football Observatory has listed all the expatriate players around the world: Brazilians, French and Argentinians dominate the ranking.