JDT retains status as Malaysia’s most valuable football team
This high valuation is attributed to the addition of three heritage players and several quality foreign imports, bringing head coach Xisco Muñoz’s squad to 39 players in total.
SHAH ALAM - Super League giants Johor Darul Ta’zim (JDT) have further cemented their status as Malaysia’s most valuable football club, with the Southern Tigers now valued at €14.08 million (RM71.8 million), according to the latest figures from football market analysis site Transfermarkt.
This high valuation was attributed to the addition of three heritage players and several quality foreign imports, bringing head coach Xisco Muñoz’s squad to 39 players in total.
The most valuable player in the current JDT lineup was new Harimau Malaya heritage striker Joao Figueiredo, who was valued at €2 million (RM9.96 million) following his confirmed signing with the club.
Brazilian striker Jairo Da Silva ranked second at €900,000 (RM4.4 million), followed by fellow heritage player Jon Irazabal at €600,000 (RM3 million). Hector Hevel, who joined from Portuguese club Portimonense, was estimated to be worth €400,000 (RM2 million).
Meanwhile, the most valuable local player in the squad remained JDT’s standout star Arif Aiman Mohd Hanapi, a four-time Most Valuable Player at the National Football Awards, with a market value of €650,000 (RM3.2 million).
So far, JDT has signed eight new players for the 2025/2026 season: Irazabal, Hevel, Figueiredo, Jairo, Antonio Glauder, Ibrahim Manusi, Moussa Sidibe and Jonathan Silva, with the combined value of these new signings amounting to approximately RM28 million.
This aggressive recruitment strategy involving top-tier heritage and foreign players is part of JDT’s serious preparations for next season’s Asian Champions League Elite (ACLE), the Asean Club Championship (ACC) and domestic competitions in the Malaysian League.
The club also released 11 players at the end of last season, including Jese Rodriguez, Alvaro Gonzalez, Jordi Amat, Murilo Henrique, Jonathan Viera, Roque Mesa and Anselmo de Moraes, as well as local players Safiq Rahim, Farizal Marlias, Izham Tarmizi and Ramadhan Saifullah, whose contracts were not renewed.
Despite these reinforcements, JDT’s current market value has dipped slightly from last season’s figure of €17.2 million (RM85.62 million), when the club had bolstered its squad for the ACLE group stage.
However, the club’s valuation was expected to rise again should JDT continue its pursuit of high-calibre signings in line with its ambitious goal of qualifying for the FIFA Club World Cup in the future.
Next season is set to be one of JDT’s most challenging yet, with the club competing in three major tournaments namely the Malaysian League, ACC and ACLE.
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