Barcelona’s reported $1.7 million package makes Kerolin Nicoli the club’s record purchase. It also produced the largest fee a Women’s Super League team has received.
Barcelona signed the Brazilian forward from Manchester City through June 2030. The transfer marks another rapid change in the women’s football market. However, neither club disclosed the price.
Reports value the deal at up to €1.5 million, approximately $1.7 million. Brazilian outlets place the fixed payment at €1.2 million, about $1.38 million. Bonuses could lift the final cost. Meanwhile, British reports describe the package as roughly £1.25 million, or $1.68 million.
Those figures would establish three distinct records. First, Kerolin becomes Barcelona Women’s most expensive signing. She is also the most expensive Brazilian women’s player. Finally, Manchester City receives the largest fee recorded for a WSL sale.
Liverpool’s £1 million sale of Olivia Smith to Arsenal set the previous WSL benchmark. Smith became the first million-pound player in women’s football. Kerolin has now raised that mark after only 18 months in Manchester. She also had two years left on the contract she signed in January 2025.
Kerolin’s production helped drive her value. Last season, she scored nine goals and supplied five assists in 15 league appearances. She helped City win the WSL and Women’s FA Cup despite starting only nine league matches. Therefore, her efficiency made her more than a winger with an impressive résumé.
Why Barcelona broke its spending pattern
Barcelona had rarely paid major fees for its women’s team. In 2022, the club reportedly paid roughly £400,000 to sign Keira Walsh from Manchester City. That deal had remained Barcelona’s record purchase. Even without the bonuses, Kerolin’s reported €1.2 million fixed fee represents a sharp reset.
The sporting logic is clear. Kerolin can operate across the front line and attack defenders from wide positions. She also turns controlled possession into a direct one-on-one threat. In addition, her nine WSL goals came in 897 league minutes, a rate of one goal every 100 minutes.
The move continues a career built across three major markets. Kerolin won the NWSL’s most valuable player award in 2023 after scoring 10 goals in 19 regular-season matches for North Carolina Courage. Later, she returned from an ACL injury and won Olympic silver with Brazil in Paris. She then moved to England and became a champion in her first full season.
“This is a dream for me,” Kerolin said at her Barcelona presentation. The 26-year-old also named Ronaldinho and Neymar among the players she watched when she was younger. Her new contract covers the 2027 Women’s World Cup in Brazil and runs for three seasons beyond it.
Still, the price requires careful wording. Barcelona and Manchester City haven’t confirmed the amount, while reports disagree about the guaranteed portion. The available evidence supports three labels: a record Barcelona purchase, a record WSL sale and a record for a Brazilian women’s player. Calling it the world transfer record would go beyond that evidence.
