How an $800k A-League player’s value rose to $33m in just seven months

August 29, 2026 — 11:00am

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If someone offered you an investment opportunity with a guaranteed return of 4025 per cent in just seven months, you’d probably do some thorough due diligence before committing to anything. If the offer came via email, it’d go straight into your spam folder.

It sounds far too good to be true - but in the case of Lucas Herrington, it’s all too real.

Herrington’s recent move to newly promoted Premier League side Hull City has been hailed as a landmark moment for Australian soccer, and a shining example of the quality of young players being developed. It also provides a sobering reminder about where A-League clubs sit in the global pecking order.

On January 3, Herrington played his last match for Brisbane Roar before being sold to Colorado Rapids for $800,000. On August 2, he played his last match for Colorado Rapids before being sold to Hull City for $24 million, with the potential for that figure to rise to $33 million with performance-related add-ons - a record for an Australian player should the full extent of the agreement be triggered. Already, after two appearances for Hull, he is being hailed in England as a shrewd signing with a huge future. He turns 19 next weekend.

Herrington did not become 41 times better at football in seven months, yet he became as much as 41 times more valuable. It’s not like Colorado taught him anything special; the skills and attributes which caught Hull’s eye were there when he was at Brisbane Roar.

All that changed is the environment in which he demonstrated them, and therefore how the market evaluated him.........

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