Most valuable players 2012: Cristiano Ronaldo behind Lionel Messi - ...

Top 25 in the gallery 

Bayern Munich lose their Champions League final at home against Chelsea, Spain beat Italy in the final of the European Championships after Mario Balotelli eliminated Germany in the semifinal in dramatic fashion. For Bayern and Germany, 2012 had some negative moments, but in terms of market values, German players saw new records.

Gómez, Ribery & Co. Bayern Munich's 2011/12 at a glance Click Here Despite the fact that Bayern did not win any titles in 2011/12—Borussia Dortmund won both the Bundesliga and the DFB Pokal—Mario Gómez, who scored 41 goals in all competitions, saw his market value grow from €35 million to €42 million—a new German record and his highest market value. Worldwide Gómez was now in the top 25 of the most valuable players—he came in on 13th place the same as his teammate Franck Ribéry.

In Mesut Özil, a second German national team player broke into the top 25. Özil managed two seasons in a row with more than 25 assists at Real Madrid, which resulted in an €8 million-plus and with a market value of €40 million was now on the same level as his teammates Karim Benzema, Luka Modrić, Ángel Di María, and Sergio Ramos. For the first time since 2006, two German national team players made the top 25; both also broke Bastian Schweinsteiger's market value record (€40 million in 2011).

The top player in England? Wayne Rooney with a market value of €65 million. The Manchester United striker ranked fourth worldwide. The Englishman is one of three players to make the 2012 top XI. The other both played for champions Manchester City. Sergio Agüero (€51 million) ranked just ahead of teammate David Silva (€50 million). 

At the very top were once again Lionel Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo. Messi already broke through the €100 million mark the year before, and now Ronaldo followed suit. But the Argentine added another €20 million to his value and remained alone at the very top of the ranking. 

The dominance of the two superstars becomes apparent when one takes a look at the top scorer list of the 2011/12 LaLiga season. Messi (50 goals) and Ronaldo (46 goals) scored significantly more than number three in the goalscorer list, Atlético's new signing Falcao (24 goals). The Colombian saw his market value grow to €50 million and was now part of the ten most valuable players on the planet. The list was dominated by LaLiga and Premier League players, both sent five each. The highest-ranked Serie A player was Wesley Sneijder (€38 million) in the 26th spot.