Born in Vernon, Dembélé began his career at Rennes before joining Dortmund in 2016. He won the DFB-Pokal with "die Borussen" in the 2016–17 season, scoring a goal in the final. A year later, he transferred to Barcelona for an initial fee of €105 million, becoming at the time the joint-second most expensive footballer ever alongside compatriot Paul Pogba. Dembélé subsequently won the double of La Liga and Copa del Rey in an injury-riddled first season in Spain.