European leagues break new spending records in transfer window

Paris (AFP) – Europe’s big five leagues spent a record $4.21 billion (3.62 billion euros) in the summer transfer window, according to a study published on Wednesday by FIFA.

The total amount of money spent by clubs in England, Spain, Germany, Italy and France was up 6.6 percent on the $3.95 billion spent in the same transfer window last year.

The English Premier League unsurprisingly contributed more than any other league, but while its 20 clubs spent a combined $1.44 billion, the increase in spending was greatest in Italy, where it was up almost 75 percent.

That was fuelled to a large extent by Cristiano Ronaldo’s 100 million-euro move from Real Madrid to Juventus, while spending by clubs in Spain’s La Liga rose 42.2 percent.

Worldwide, the amount of money spent between June 1 and September 1 hit a record $5.44 billion, as 182 of FIFA’s 211 member associations had their transfer window open.

The results are taken from analysis of FIFA’s own International Transfer Matching System, which registers all completed transfers.