20 years on: The top transfers stemming from the Bosman ruling

The football landscape has never been the same after Dec. 15, 1995, when Jean-Marc Bosman, "held captive," as he puts it, by Standard Liege, achieved a landmark victory at the European Court of Justice in Luxembourg.

Until then, an out-of-contract player couldn't simply leave a club. A free transfer had to be permitted or another club's fee accepted. In other words, a player still belonged to a club after running down his contract and couldn't just depart for nothing. Even the most elite of players felt trapped.

However, the Bosman ruling - in which he successfully sued Liege - shifted the power radically from clubs to players, allowing the latter to join new clubs without their old clubs pocketing a fee, and thereby demand increased wages. As James Riach of the Guardian recently wrote, Bosman "arguably had more of an impact on the European game than Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi combined."

It's been 20 years since the turning point, and the past two decades have seen a long list of players benefit from the Bosman ruling.

David Beckham

In 2007, David Beckham crossed the Atlantic Ocean and signed a five-year, £128-million ($250-million) contract with the LA Galaxy after running out his deal at Real Madrid. The transfer is regarded as one of the most significant in the short history of Major League Soccer.

Sol Campbell

In 2001, Sol Campbell became the first player to move across North London since 1977, abandoning Tottenham Hotspur for Arsenal in a transfer that the former's supporters will never forgive. The English defender signed a four-year contract with the Gunners and went on to win two Premier League titles, the second coming in the season of the Invincibles.

Steve McManaman

In 1999, Steve McManaman joined Real Madrid after having run down his contract at Liverpool. The move was incredibly controversial, as he was the first major English player to refuse all efforts to offload him for a fee or extend his contract, but it worked out exceptionally well for the versatile midfielder. He won two Champions League titles, two La Liga crowns, and the hearts of Real Madrid's supporters in only four seasons.

Andrea Pirlo

In 2011, Andrea Pirlo, then without a beard and regarded as past his best due to injuries, wrote a new chapter in his career, joining Juventus after AC Milan somehow decided that he was no longer required at the San Siro. The transfer is about as close to lunacy as one can be, and the Italian maestro, never short on class, referred to it as "love at first sight."

Robert Lewandowski

In 2014, Robert Lewandowski effectively gave Bayern Munich a monopoly on German football and ended Borussia Dortmund's dreams of reaching Bayern's heights, moving to the Allianz Arena on a Bosman. It was a cruel transfer for Dortmund, who didn't pocket a penny, and the Polish forward is leaving centre-backs for dead these days.