Top 10 biggest sales in Championship history after Jobe Bellingham’s move from Sunderland to Dortmund

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The Championship is a breeding ground for supreme talent, like Jobe Bellingham, and EFL Analysis has listed the top 10 biggest sales in second tier history.

Over recent seasons, the second tier of English football has proven to be a hotbed for impressive talent, which have been acquired by some of Europe’s elite outfits.

As the summer transfer window continues, a host of Championship stars have been targeted for moves to top flight sides, most recently with Italian champions Napoli making bids for Norwich star Borga Sainz.

However, the most notable confirmed departure in the second tier summer comes with Jobe Bellingham departing Sunderland, who won promotion to the Premier League through the play-off final, for German giants Borussia Dortmund.

Before explaining the financials regarding Bellingham’s Black Cats departure and where he now ranks outside the list, EFL Analysis has taken a deep dive into the top 10 most expensive sales ever from Championship clubs.

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Top 10 most expensive sales in Championship history

Former Southampton midfielder Romeo Lavia remains the most expensive sale ever made by a Championship club, following his eye-watering £58 million move from the Saints to Chelsea in 2023.

Holding midfielder Lavia made 34 appearances for Southampton in their 2022/23 Premier League season, but could not help his side stem the tide of relegation, and the Blues acquired the former Anderlecht prospect for a staggering fee.

Considering Lavia joined Southampton only 13 months before his sale, for a fee of £10.5 million, it constitutes not only the biggest second tier sale on record, but one of the most impressive pieces of transfer business as a whole.

Former Leeds United duo Georginio Rutter and Archie Gray make the list, after they made moves from the second tier to the top flight in last summer’s window, which saw the pair both miss out on Leeds’ Championship title win.

Top 10 most expensive sales in Championship history

Bellingham’s move from the Black Cats to Dortmund could break Sunderland’s most expensive sales record, but just misses out on entering the top 10 most expensive Championship sales list.

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Sale of Jobe Bellingham from Sunderland to Borussia Dortmund

On the back of winning Championship Young Player of the Season, and playing a pivotal role in Sunderland’s play-off final win, the former Birmingham City youngster followed in the footsteps of elder brother Jude Bellingham by making the move to the Signal Iduna Park.

According to Sky Sports News reporter Keith Downie on X, the club-record sale will see Sunderland bank a £27.8 million fee, with the potential for £4 million in add-ons, although Downie states that “£2m of those are easily achievable, £2m are unrealistic.”

Therefore, Bellingham’s initial fee sees the departing Sunderland star miss out on the top 10 most expensive Championship sales list by around £200,000.

His sale places Bellingham 12th in the list, with Ollie Watkins sitting just outside the top 10 in 11th after his £28m switch from then-Championship Brentford to Aston Villa in 2020.

However, Jobe Bellingham’s transfer fee to Dortmund is £2.7 million more than the £25 million figure the German giants shelled out to Birmingham for Jude Bellingham in 2020, with the elder Bellingham currently sitting 13th in the most expensive sales list in Championship history.