The 2022 FIFA World Cup has thus far packed a couple of surprises from Argentina losing to Saudi Arabia to Germany suffering a defeat to Japan. However, both teams have bounced back since then - with Argentina knocking two past Mexico and Germany managing to hold Spain to a 1-1 draw, despite La Furia Roja having subjected group member Costa Rica to a humiliating 7-0 loss.
Others like Brazil, France, and Portugal have lived up to the weight of expectations, and some familiar names are again grabbing the spotlight in the World Cup like Kylian Mbappe - who helped his team edge past Denmark. The biggest stage in international football can hardly forget the French speedster who made his mark in the last World Cup and this edition is no different, but other names are showing their prowess for the national teams as well. Bukayo Saka and Jude Bellingham have carried their excellent forms from the Premier League and Bundesliga respectively. Lautaro Martinez is yet to make his mark despite being one of the highest-valued players in the tournament.
The World Cup can be a stage of upsets and underdogs clinching victories, and yet some teams have more to live up to, due to the star power in their national squads. Here is a look at the most expensive teams in the 2022 FIFA World Cup.
England, the birthplace of football, has the highest-valued team this year with Dortmund's box-to-box prodigy Bellingham being rated the most expensive player on the squad. Brazil - who have emerged favourites to win this World Cup - rank second in terms of squad value with Real Madrid's Vinicius Jr being valued as the most expensive player on their side. This year, three South American teams are among the top ten most expensive sides, but in football squad value rarely ensures victory, as Belgium - the tenth most expensive side this year - found out from the 2-0 loss to Morocco, which ranks 16th on the list.