English clubs top transfer spending as FIFA as announce record January spending

Chelsea paid a reported initial fee of more than €80m

TRANSFERS English clubs top transfer spending as FIFA as announce record January spending

Ayoola Kelechi 16:13 - 09.02.2023

English clubs outspent their competitors in the January transfer window by a mile

English clubs were responsible for 57.3% of global transfer spending according to FIFA in their annual report on January transfers called the International Transfer Snapshot which captured new transfer records for the January transfer window across the Men and Women’s markets. 

FIFA posts new transfer records

FIFA recorded that 4,387 international transfers had been made globally in the men’s transfer market, marking a record number of transfers for the January window since the launch of the Transfer Matching System in 2010. 

Arsenal announce the signing of Jakub Kiwior
Arsenal signed Jakub Kiwior from Spezia

This saw an increase of 14.4% in the number of international transfers recorded from the January window last year (2022), which stood at 3,834. 

There was also a 30.2% increase in the number of transfers in the women’s game which saw 341 international transfers in January 2023. 

Record finances in men's and women’s transfer window

In addition to the record number of players that moved in the January window, there was also a record amount of money spent on signings in the January transfer window across both the men’s and women’s transfer markets. 

The women’s game saw $774,300 in transfer fees globally, which set a new benchmark for total spending on transfers since FIFA started collecting data. 

Chelsea signed Enzo Fernandez from Benfica for a British-record fee.

In the men’s game, FIFA estimates that around $1.05 billion was spent globally on transfers for new players, which is the highest ever recorded. 

They also estimate that English clubs account for $898.6 million of global transfer spending, making them by far the biggest spending country in the world for transfers in the January 2023 window followed by France whose clubs spent $131.9 million this year.

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