A Black movement activist covered by red paint attends a protest against racism and police violence, and against a police operation that took place at Jacarezinho slum in Rio de Janeiro, on the day that marks 133 years since the abolition of Slavery in the country, in Sao Paulo, Brazil, on May 13, 2021. (Photo by Amanda Perobelli/Reuters)

Football transfers are not cheap. To have a player strengthen their ranks, teams are willing to pay big money. The football transfer considered to be the most expensive in the sport's history was that of Gareth Bale leaving Tottenham to play at Real Madrid. The Spanish club paid not less than £86 million (about $133 million at today's exchange rates) to have the player among its own. But recent news suggest that this record might be broken this year. According to reports in the media, UK Premier League team Manchester United is willing to almost double that amount.

An Egyptian army soldier stands guard near debris from a Russian airliner which crashed at the Hassana area in Arish city, north Egypt, November 1, 2015. Russia has grounded Airbus A321 jets flown by the Kogalymavia airline, Interfax news agency reported on Sunday, after one of its fleet crashed in Egypt's Sinai Peninsula, killing all 224 people on board. (Photo by Mohamed Abd El Ghany/Reuters)

MiG-15 jet fighters are pictured in Kucova Air Base in Kucova, Albania on October 3, 2018. Albania retired its 224 Soviet- and Chinese-made MiGs in 2005, and since 2009 NATO neighbors Italy and Greece monitor its airspace. That led to economic decline in and around Kucova, which was called “Stalin City” during the era of Communist rule. (Photo by Florion Goga/Reuters)

In this November 2, 2017 photo, Mathew Fulkerson and his wife Leigh Ann pose at their Subterra Airbnb located in a former underground missile silo base near Eskridge, Kan. It was designed to house a nuclear warhead six decades ago – but now, this Cold War silo is the perfect spot for a mini break at just $133 a night. (Photo by Thad Allton/The Topeka Capital-Journal via AP Photo)

People mourn at a makeshift memorial in front of the Russian embassy in Yerevan on March 23, 2024, a day after a gun attack on the Crocus City Hall in Russia's Krasnogorsk. Camouflaged assailants opened fire at the packed Crocus City Hall in Moscow's northern suburb of Krasnogorsk on March 22, 2024, evening ahead of a concert by Soviet-era rock band Piknik in the deadliest attack in Russia for at least a decade. Russia on March 23, 2024, said it had arrested 11 people – including four gunmen – over the attack on a Moscow concert hall claimed by Islamic State, as the death toll rose to 133 people. (Photo by Karen Minasyan/AFP Photo)

A period of relative stability has put the Iranian capital No1 on the list of world cities that have achieved biggest improvements in liveability over the past five years, as calculated by the Economist Intelligence Unit. The “most improved” top 10 contains some unexpected names. So, eg, the fourth place: Abidjan, Ivory Coast. Latest ranking: 128; Ranking five years ago: 131; Five-year index movement: 3.8%. Here: A supporter of Ivory Coast president Alassane Ouattara campaigns in a market in the city’s Koumassi quarter. (Photo by Sia Kambou/AFP Photo)

Black softshell turtle or Bostami turtle (Nilssonia nigricans), extremely rare and critically endangered species of tortoise is seen in a pond in Chittagong, Bangladesh on March 1, 2022. For decades, the breeding grounds have shrunk and their habitat has been threatened by habitat pollution. (Photo by Mohammad Shajahan/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)