Football clubs around the world spent a record $7.35bn (£5.6bn) on transfers according to a report by world governing body FIFA.
The figure represents an increase of more than 5.8% on what was spent by clubs on transfers in 2018.
English clubs led the way with a total transfer outlay of £1.5bn, which represented a 22.1% decrease from 2018.
The women’s game witnessed a16.3% rise transfer spending with $652,032 (£497,000) spent
The United States had the most players – at almost 20% – of the 833 transfers made in the women’s game.
The were 18,042 such moves – also a record – in the men’s game, involving 15,463 players of 178 different nationalities.
“It is remarkable to see a new record number of transfers in the men’s market,” said FIFA chief legal and compliance officer Dr Emilio Garcia Silvero.
“We observe, as well, increasing all-round figures in the women’s market, which is a sign of the positive overall development of women’s football over the last year which we trust will continue in 2020.”
Key points from the men’s report
- Permanent club-to-club transfers only represented 11.6% of all moves in 2019.
- The most common type of transfer was that of players out of contract, which was 64.3%.
- Brazil had the most clubs involved in international transfers with 306. Germany (144) was second, Spain third (130) and England (128) fourth.
- Brazil also had the highest number of incoming transfers with 831, while England had the highest number from Uefa countries with 694.
- English clubs spent £1.5bn, which was a 22.1% decrease from 2018 but still the most of any country.
- In terms of net value, Portugal generated the most with £384m, with England the worst in that category with minus £549.9m.
Key points from the women’s report:
- The total number of international transfers went from 696 in 2018 to 833 in 2019.
- The number of moves for players out of contract was 86.3%.
- The number of associations involved in international transfers went from 74 to 86.
- There were 188 clubs from 45 different European associations involved in 646 international transfers, which was more than three quarters of the worldwide activity.
- Players moving from Australia to the US was the most common transfer and switches the other way around was the second most popular.
- Spain had the most number of incoming transfers with 104, with the US (72) second and England (57) in third
