Real Madrid Makes Yan Diomande the Most Expensive African Player

Yan Diomande, left RB Leipzig to join Real Madrid. (rbleipzig.com)

JAKARTA - Real Madrid has agreed to sign RB Leipzig's young winger Yan Diomande for a price of 115.8 million pounds. The price from Madrid makes this Ivory Coast striker the most expensive African player.

Two years ago, Diomande was nobody. Although he was a national team player for Ivory Coast, his figure was not well known because he only played at AS Frenzi, a fourth-class club in American football.

Yes, Diomande only played in a small club in TheUnited Premier Soccer League (UPSL). The participants in the league are on average indeed MLS clubs. Only not the senior team but the U-19 team from MLS. So, the league is a coaching and maturing event for junior players before stepping up to the senior level.

Diomande played in the UPSL in 2023. Two years later, he was offered to European clubs because he had the talent to play at a higher level. Some of the clubs that offered Diomande, including Chelsea, Bournemouth, Crystal Palace to Rangers. But they all refused until finally Diomande, who was then 19, was recruited by Spanish La Liga club Leganes in 2024.

However, Leganes placed him in the B team or the junior team before finally entering the senior team and making his debut in March 2025. Diomande's performance in La Liga was quite satisfactory. He played 10 times and scored two goals.

However, Diomande has already caught the attention so that Leipzig bought it. Leganes also made a big profit because in a matter of months they were able to release the player for a price of 20 million pounds.

Interestingly, Leipzig immediately gave a long contract. Diomande got a five-year contract and immediately soared in his debut in the German Bundesliga.

He is recorded as the second youngest player to score a hat-trick in the German League. When completing the 2025/2026 competition, he bagged 12 goals and nine assists. Diomande became the second top scorer at the club after Christoph Baumgartner.

Diomande's brilliant performance immediately caught the attention of Madrid. Even the La Liga giant was not just interested but followed up by submitting an offer to Leipzig. Madrid is indeed competing with Paris Saint-Germain for Diomande.

However, PSG eventually backed down because Madrid offered 115.8 million pounds to bring Diomande back to La Liga. The price was immediately agreed by Leipzig.

How not, Leipzig did not take long to make Diomande's price rise many times. Even Madrid made Diomande the most expensive African player.

Madrid also gave Diomande a long-term contract with a duration of five years. This makes Diomande's new contract expires in 2031. Madrid still has a one-year extension option so that Diomande's contract is until 2032.

Diomande's career seems to have taken off. The player who brought Ivory Coast to the 32-strong World Cup 2026 only needed two years, from a small club in the US and now joined the biggest club on earth.