Barcelona agree deal to sign Karim Adeyemi from Borussia Dortmund for between €22m and €30m
The 24-year-old German forward, who reunites with Hansi Flick after his Germany debut under him, joins on a five-year contract after Barcelona and Dortmund reached an agreement on a fee reported in the range of €22 million to €30 million.
Barcelona have reached an agreement with Borussia Dortmund to sign German forward Karim Adeyemi, with the 24-year-old set to sign a five-year contract at the Camp Nou. The deal, brokered while sporting director Deco attends the World Cup in North America, strengthens an attack already reinforced this summer by Anthony Gordon's €80 million arrival from Newcastle.
Transfer details
Initial reports suggest Barcelona's first offer of €20 million was rejected, but the clubs remained in contact and a compromise was eventually struck. Spanish outlets El Periódico and ABC cite fees of €22 million plus €7 million in variables and a flat €30 million respectively, placing the final outlay between €22 million and €30 million. Adeyemi had refused to extend his contract, which was set to expire in summer 2027, prompting Dortmund to extract a fee now rather than risk losing him for free next year. Deco has been in Dallas for Spain's round-of-16 win over Portugal and is due in Los Angeles for the quarter-final against Belgium on Friday.
A reunion with Flick and an electric profile
The move reunites Adeyemi with Barcelona coach Hansi Flick, who handed him his senior Germany debut in a 6-0 win over Armenia. A left-footed attacker capable of playing across the front three, he favours the right flank cutting inside but has also been deployed centrally. His standout attribute is raw speed: during his time at Dortmund, Adeyemi covered 30 metres in 3.60 seconds, a time that betters the 3.78 seconds Usain Bolt registered over the same distance when setting the 100m world record at the 2009 Berlin World Championships.
- Karim Adeyemi
- 3.6 seconds
- Usain Bolt (2009 record)
- 3.78 seconds
Career path and mixed returns
Adeyemi moved to RB Salzburg in 2018 for €10 million, scoring 33 goals and providing 24 assists in 94 appearances before Dortmund paid €30 million for him in 2022. Across four seasons in the Bundesliga he totalled 36 goals and 25 assists in 146 matches, including eight starts during Dortmund's run to the 2023-24 Champions League final. He was omitted from Germany's 2026 World Cup squad amid form and fitness concerns. The Athletic's German football writer described the signing as a surprise.
His potential remains largely unrealised.
He noted that Adeyemi can deliver six excellent weeks but then fade, a pattern he will need to break at Barcelona.
- Joins RB Salzburg from Unterhaching for €10 million at age 16
- Transferred to Borussia Dortmund for €30 million as Erling Haaland's replacement
- Barcelona agree deal with Dortmund, reported fee between €22m and €30m
Barcelona's attacking reshuffle
Gordon's arrival earlier this summer, combined with Adeyemi's, gives Flick a group of fast, direct wide options that already includes Lamine Yamal, Raphinha and Ferran Torres. The move is likely to trigger the loan departure of 19-year-old winger Roony Bardghji, while Ansu Fati has joined Monaco permanently and Robert Lewandowski left for Chicago Fire. Barcelona also opted not to exercise their €30 million buy option on Marcus Rashford's loan from Manchester United. Adeyemi, born in Munich to a Nigerian father and Romanian mother, promised his father he would turn professional to help his community in Ibadan, Nigeria, where he later built a football academy.
