For decades, African clubs operated as talent incubators for Europe. The business model was simple: develop, showcase, export early. Big money rarely stayed within the continent.
That model is changing.
Seven-figure intra-African transfers are no longer anomalies; they are signals of commercial growth, rising broadcast revenue, CAF prize-money expansion, and privately backed ownership reshaping domestic competition. When Al Ahly pays multi-million euros to Wydad, or when Pyramids flex financial muscle in Cairo, it tells us something deeper: African clubs are no longer just sellers. They are strategic buyers.
But why now?
The Market Shift: Why Fees Are Rising
The spike in intra-continental spending accelerated after 2016, when CAF Champions League prize money increased significantly. Clubs reaching the latter stages began earning enough to reinvest rather than sell immediately.
Egypt and South Africa dominate this list for structural reasons:
- Stronger television deals
- Corporate sponsorship backing
- Privately funded ownership (notably Pyramids FC)
- Consistent CAF group-stage revenue
North Africa, particularly Egypt and Morocco, has become the financial engine of intra-African trade. This concentration raises a key question: are we witnessing healthy growth or widening inequality between elite clubs and the rest?
With that context, here are the ten biggest intra-African transfers and what they truly meant competitively.
10. Thembinkosi Lorch
Mamelodi Sundowns → Wydad AC (2025)
€500,000
According to figures published by Transfermarkt, the €500,000 move represented more than a financial exchange; it was tactical currency. Wydad AC, Africa’s Red Castle, has built a system reliant on compact defensive blocks and rapid counter-attacking transitions, but they required creativity between the lines in tight CAF Champions League knockout fixtures.
Lorch, previously playing for Mamelodi Sundowns FC, widely known as The Brazilians, brought elite chance creation and composure against high presses. In the 2025 Premier Soccer League 1–1 draw against Orlando Pirates, Sundowns were exposed in wide transitional moments; precisely the kind of attacking patterns Wydad aimed to sharpen in continental competition.
9. Keagan Dolly
Ajax Cape Town → Mamelodi Sundowns (2014)
€598,000
Before Sundowns’ CAF dominance, this signing laid tactical groundwork.
Dolly operated as an inverted winger drifting into half-spaces, complementing Sundowns’ possession-heavy build-up. The investment preceded their historic 2016 CAF Champions League triumph, where they defeated Zamalek 3–1 on aggregate.
This was not just recruitment. It was squad architecture.
8. Emam Ashour
El Mahalla → Zamalek SC (2019)
€650,000
Zamalek signed Ashour during a domestic rebuild phase. His box-to-box engine and pressing intensity added dynamism to their midfield pivot.
He later played a key role as Zamalek reclaimed domestic competitiveness, helping them mount a serious Egyptian Premier League title charge.
Mid-range fees like this prove intelligent recruitment can outperform inflated spending when aligned with tactical clarity.
7. Khama Billiat
Ajax Cape Town → Mamelodi Sundowns (2013)
€690,000
Few domestic transfers delivered such a tactical return.
Billiat became central to Sundowns’ high-tempo attacking transitions. His diagonal runs stretched backlines; his clinical finishing punished defensive lapses.
He was instrumental in the 2016 CAF Champions League final, where Sundowns defeated Zamalek 3–1 on aggregate after a commanding 3–0 first-leg win in Pretoria.
This signing marked the beginning of Sundowns’ continental era.
6. Ronwen Williams
SuperSport United → Mamelodi Sundowns (2022)
€880,000
Goalkeepers rarely command significant transfer fees within African markets, but Mamelodi Sundowns broke that convention when they secured Ronwen Williams.
Williams quickly justified the investment. In the 2025 PSL season opener, he kept a clean sheet in a 2–0 victory over Cape Town City FC, commanding his defensive line and initiating build-up phases under pressure. More notably, during Sundowns’ 2023 African Football League triumph, he saved consecutive penalties, including one against Al Ahly, in a high-stakes continental encounter. This was not a headline purchase; it was structural reinforcement.
5. Thembinkosi Lorch
Wydad AC → Al-Ittihad (2026)
€1.10 million
Lorch’s resale illustrated the rapid inflation of African marketplace valuation when paired with CAF Champions League exposure. After showcasing his ability to break lines and threaten defenses in both domestic and continental competitions, his price tag increased significantly over one season.
Though precise match impact numbers are complex, Wydad’s tactical evolution with him operating between midfield and attack helped them sustain challenging CAF runs and tighter Botola Pro 1 title races, a testament to his influence on team rhythm and creativity.
His transfer is early evidence that CAF performance directly increases intra-African transfer liquidity, turning continental vision into financial valuation overnight.
4. Walid Azaro
DH Jadida → Al Ahly SC (2017)
€1.4 million
When Walid Azaro joined Al Ahly SC in June 2017 on a four-year deal worth $1.4 million, as published by Transfermarkt, it was more than a transfer; it was a statement. He rejected multiple European offers, despite encouragement from Moroccan national team coach Hervé Renard, choosing instead to join the Egyptian giants. The move made him the first Moroccan player in Al Ahly’s history.
Azaro’s impact was immediate and emphatic.
In the 2017–18 Egyptian Premier League season, he scored 18 league goals, finishing as the competition’s top scorer and powering The Red Devils to their 40th league title. His sharp movement inside the box, aggressive pressing from the front, and clinical finishing in tight spaces fit seamlessly into Al Ahly’s structured attacking system.
This was not speculative recruitment. It was elite-level execution. Azaro justified the fee within one season, proving that intra-African investments can deliver immediate competitive returns and silverware.
3. Reda Slim
FAR Rabat → Al Ahly SC (2023)
€2 million
Reda Slim joined Al Ahly SC in 2023 as part of the club’s strategic reinforcement ahead of another domestic and continental campaign. The Moroccan winger transitioned from AS FAR Rabat into a high-rotation squad competing across the Egyptian Premier League and CAF competitions.
During the 2023–24 season, Slim contributed 5 goals for Al Ahly, providing attacking depth from wide areas and supporting the club’s pressing structure in advanced zones. His ability to stretch defensive blocks, attack half-spaces, and rotate across the front line strengthened Al Ahly’s wing options during a demanding fixture schedule.
This was calculated squad layering — not impulsive spending — reinforcing a side built to compete for both league titles and continental honours.
2. Ali Gabr
Zamalek SC → Pyramids FC (2018)
€2.15 million
Ali Gabr’s €2.15 million move in 2018 was a defining moment in Egyptian football’s financial evolution. Pyramids FC, newly backed by Saudi investment at the time, entered the market with unprecedented spending power. The ownership overhaul allowed the club to inject significant capital into recruitment, breaking the long-standing transfer dominance of Al Ahly and Zamalek. Gabr’s acquisition signaled that Pyramids were not assembling a project; they were accelerating one.
On the pitch, Gabr delivered structural stability. His aerial dominance, defensive positioning, and command of the backline were crucial as Pyramids pushed into Egypt’s top tier. He anchored the defence during key league fixtures that helped the club secure top-table finishes and qualify for CAF competition. His leadership at the back contributed to Pyramids reaching the 2020 CAF Confederation Cup Final, where they finished runners-up after a narrow 1–0 defeat to RS Berkane.
1. Malick Evouna
Wydad Casablanca → Al Ahly SC (2015)
€2.25 million
Malick Evouna’s transfer remains one of the defining intra-African deals of the modern era. Before his move, he was already one of North Africa’s most clinical forwards. During the 2014/15 Botola Pro season, Evouna featured in 26 league matches for Wydad Casablanca, scoring 16 goals and establishing himself as a decisive presence inside the penalty area.
Al Ahly moved quickly.
In the 2015/16 Egyptian Premier League season, Evouna delivered immediate returns, scoring 12 goals in 24 league matches. His explosive pace in transition, diagonal runs behind defensive lines, and instinctive finishing strengthened the Red Devils’ attacking structure during domestic and continental campaigns.
What This Means for African Football Today
This list is not about numbers alone. It reveals structural transformation.
CAF’s financial growth has created reinvestment capacity. Egyptian and South African clubs now operate with semi-European commercial models. Private ownership has accelerated inflation.
But there are implications.
Will €5 million intra-African deals become normal within five years?
Will North African clubs financially separate from Sub-Saharan leagues?
Does retaining talent longer strengthen continental competitiveness — or merely delay European exports?
There is also a competitive risk. If spending remains concentrated among a handful of elite clubs, domestic leagues may become predictable. Competitive balance is crucial for commercial sustainability.
Yet one fact is undeniable: African football is no longer purely a supplier market.
Clubs are investing. They are competing financially. They are shaping their own ecosystem.
And as CAF competitions grow in visibility and broadcast value, this internal marketplace will expand further.
The real question is not whether records will be broken.
It is whether the growth will be inclusive, or whether Africa’s football economy will mirror Europe’s financial stratification.
The next transfer window may provide the answer.
