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According to the data collected and compiled by Sponsorlytix, Premier League teams have spent a total of £1.9 billion on gross transfers during the summer 2022 transfer window, which is by far the largest amount ever recorded during a single transfer window in the history of football.
Premier League Clubs Transfer Market Data 2023/24
The previous record was £1.4 billion during the 2017 summer transfer window, and the record before that was £1.1 billion in the summer transfer window of 2021.
In addition to player salaries, transfer spending is the second-highest expenditure among football clubs (in some cases it is the highest compared to player salaries), in order to maximize performance and compete for whatever the club is competing for, whether that’s a top-four finish, the title, or avoiding relegation.
As teams face greater pressure to remain in the competition this season than ever before, the desire to recruit top-quality players has increased to unprecedented heights.
Lets take a look at the top stats:
- Premier League teams spent a total of £1.9 billion during the summer transfer window, which is 34% more than the previous record set in the previous summer (£1.4 billion)
- Prior to the January transfer window of this season, the Premier League clubs’ gross spending of £1.92 billion made the 2022–23 season’s spending on transfers the biggest since the two-window season started, surpassing the previous record by 3% (2017–18: £1.86 billion)
- All of Europe’s “big five” leagues’ individual gross spending increased from the previous summer, with their combined gross spending rising by 52% (2022:£3.9 billion; 2021:£2.62 billion)
- Premier League clubs were in charge of 49% of the ‘big five’ leagues’ total gross spending (Premier League: £1.9 billion; Serie A: £655 million; Ligue 1: £488 million; La Liga: £441 million; Bundesliga: £423 million)
- In the last five years of the transfer market, only Southampton and Norwich made a net profit, every other club generally ends the window in net negative
- Since 1992, all the years transfers market business combined, there is not even a single club that has a net positive.
Premier League Transfer Spending Last 5 Years | 2017/18 – 2022/23
| Club | Purchase | Sales | Net | Average | |
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Manchester City | £818.5m | £312.9m | -£505.6m | -£101.1 m |
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Manchester United | £611.1m | £232.2m | -£378.9m | -£75.8 |
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Chelsea | £656.9m | £523.6m | -£133.2m | -£26.6m |
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Everton | £536.5m | £261.5m | -£275.0m | -£55.0m |
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Arsenal | £443.1m | £194.2m | -£249.0m | -£49.8m |
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Brighton & Hove Albion | £212.0m | £14.6m | -£197.4m | -£39.5m |
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Liverpool | £470.9m | £378.5m | -£92.4m | -£18.5m |
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AFC Bournemouth | £204.1m | £70.7m | -£133.4 m | -£26.7m |
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West Ham United | £308.1m | £152.4m | -£155.7m | -£31.1m |
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Wolverhampton Wanderers | £269.4m | £84.7m | -£184.8m | -£37.0 m |
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Leicester City | £381.4m | £268.8m | -£112.6m | -£22.5 |
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Crystal Palace | £161.5m | £105.3m | -£56.2m | -£11.2m |
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Watford | £204.0m | £108.8m | -£95.2m | -£19.0m |
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Newcastle United | £273.6m | £166.2m | -£107.5m | -£21.5m |
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Aston Villa | £276.2m | £78.1m | -£198.1m | -£39.6m |
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Burnley | £126.6m | £74.1m | -£52.5m | -£10.5m |
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Tottenham | £322.3m | £227.7m | -£94.6m | -£18.9m |
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Sheffield United | £55.0m | £14.7m | -£40.3m | -£08.1m |
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Southampton | £240.4m | £243.2m | £02.8m | £00.6m |
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Norwich City | £65.2m | £112.0m | £46.8m | £09.4m |
Source: FIFA, UEFA, England FA, Sponsorlytix
The dangers of clubs failing to properly manage their finances while maintaining high levels of spending have been highlighted in recent years. Clubs must prioritize financial stability off the field as much as they do on it, particularly in the face of rising debts and exorbitant player salaries.
Under new American ownership, Chelsea outspent every other Premier League team in the transfer market, totaling £249 million in spending. The club was forced to spend heavily to fill and replace key areas of the squad due to an exodus of players in attack and defense. Chelsea’s spending was £20 million more than Manchester United, who spent £229 million.
Manchester City had one of the most successful transfer windows in the club’s history since HH Sheikh Mansoor took ownership. They ended the summer transfer window with a net profit of £18.36m.
Source: FIFA, UEFA, England FA, Sponsorlytix
Even though the most expensive individual transfer in this summer’s window cost less than it did in the previous summer, the number of deals worth more than £50 million increased compared to 2021 and the years before the pandemic (2022: 7; 2021: 4; 2017-19 three-year average: 4).
The net amount spent by Premier League teams during the summer transfer window (£1.1 billion) is the largest amount ever and the first time it has exceeded $1 billion. In comparison to the previous summer (2021: 10%), the Premier League teams’ net transfer spend represented a higher percentage of their expected income (18%) due to the larger margin by which their transfer expenses surpassed their transfer earnings.
Premier League Transfer Spending Last 30 Years | 1992/93 – 2022/23
| Club | Purchase | Arrivals | Sales | Departures | Net | |
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Chelsea | £2.54bn | 676 | £1.30b | 669 | £-1.24b |
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Manchester City | £2.28bn | 683 | £872.85m | 680 | £-1.40b |
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Manchester United | £2.13bn | 520 | £729.29m | 519 | £-1.40b |
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Liverpool FC | £1.70bn | 540 | £1.05bn | 543 | £-652.56m |
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Tottenham Hotspur | £1.52bn | 635 | £880.23m | 637 | £-642.33m |
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Arsenal FC | £1.46bn | 499 | £737.62m | 502 | £-722.85m |
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Newcastle United | £1.13bn | 558 | £577.26m | 554 | £-548.54m |
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Everton FC | £1.06bn | 499 | £682.99m | 497 | £-372.15m |
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West Ham United | £1.01bn | 661 | £542.32m | 658 | £-468.42m |
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Aston Villa | £993.41m | 569 | £518.71m | 570 | £-474.70m |
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Southampton FC | £685.51m | 616 | £602.78m | 620 | £-82.74m |
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Leicester City | £655.23m | 642 | £479.12m | 645 | £-176.10m |
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Wolverhampton Wanderers | £647.64m | 736 | £304.35m | 724 | £-343.29m |
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Fulham FC | £571.04m | 665 | £247.77m | 666 | £-323.27m |
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Leeds United | £511.83m | 697 | £371.68m | 699 | £-140.15m |
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Sunderland AFC | £498.63m | 702 | £286.12m | 705 | £-212.51m |
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Middlesbrough FC | £444.11m | 642 | £319.55m | 643 | £-124.56m |
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Crystal Palace | £441.38m | 622 | £243.36m | 633 | £-198.02m |
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West Bromwich Albion | £380.32m | 512 | £220.16m | 511 | £-160.17m |
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Watford FC | £369.13m | 720 | £339.80m | 719 | £-29.33m |
Source: FIFA, UEFA, England FA, Sponsorlytix
Spending In Other European Leagues
This summer’s window saw a 52% rise in gross transfer spending across Europe’s “big five” leagues, bringing the total to £3.9 billion (summer 2021: £2.65 billion).
The gross spending of Premier League clubs (£1.93b) was about three times that of their closest counterparts in Serie A (£656m) and more than four times that of their furthest peers in Bundesliga (£423.89m).
Source: FIFA, UEFA, England FA, Sponsorlytix
