English football – with Liverpool at the forefront – flexed its financial might this summer in a transfer window that underscored the widening gulf in European football and the sway players now hold in forcing moves.
Fueled by massive domestic and international broadcasting deals, Premier League clubs shattered records by spending nearly $4 billion on new signings – more than the combined outlay of Spain, Italy, Germany and France.
The previous high, set just a year earlier in 2023, stood at 2.36 billion pounds (about $3.2 billion).
The spree was not just about volume but dominance. The league’s net spend reached $1.75 billion, dwarfing Italy’s $100 million and Spain’s $60 million, according to Transfermarkt.
France and Germany, in contrast, ended the window in profit.
The numbers point to a competitive imbalance across Europe that even the failed Super League project of 2021 could not resolve.
For now, the Premier League’s financial supremacy has made it the undisputed center of the global transfer market. Perhaps there already is a super league – it’s called the Premier League.
Leading the unprecedented spending was Liverpool, whose $570 million outlay marked the biggest ever by one club in a single window.
The English champions broke the British transfer record twice – first for German playmaker Florian Wirtz, then on deadline day when Sweden striker Alexander Isak joined from Newcastle for $170 million, making him the fourth-most expensive player in football history.
Liverpool could afford such spending because the club had bought only one player last summer – Federico Chiesa for 10 million pounds ($13.2 million) – while making a net profit of more than $50 million as Arne Slot leaned on the squad left by Jurgen Klopp to win the Premier League in his first season in charge.
This summer, the Reds also brought in about $250 million from sales. While their signings look strong on paper, their ability to recoup money has been equally impressive, often relying on Saudi Arabia for big fees, with Darwin Núñez the latest to move there.
It was also a summer when some players took to social media to push for transfers, using Instagram Stories instead of formal requests to show discontent.
Isak, for instance, effectively went on strike at Newcastle while agitating for his Liverpool move. The club went public with a rare statement challenging one of its star players, but eventually gave in.
Yoane Wissa used a similar approach, posting about his unhappiness at Brentford just a day before the deadline after skipping training for weeks. He also got his move, as Isak’s replacement at Newcastle.
By contrast, Crystal Palace captain Marc Guehi, who was linked with Liverpool, kept playing for his team while bids were considered. Palace couldn’t find a replacement, so Guehi stayed – and likely earned respect from fans for his commitment.
English football’s runaway revenue stream looks set to accelerate in European competition.
The Premier League has a record six teams in the Champions League’s new 36-team format, thanks in part to 17th-place Tottenham winning the Europa League last season.
Those six teams can realistically expect to earn a collective 600 million euros ($698 million) in UEFA prize money – more than the entire Europa League prize fund shared among 36 clubs from 23 countries. Aston Villa and Nottingham Forest are also bringing home UEFA money.
The wealth gap inside the Champions League is already stark.
Liverpool’s sixth-most expensive signing this offseason – 31 million euros ($36 million) for Italian teenager Giovanni Leoni as a backup defender – is more than the entire reported annual revenue of Qarabag, its opponent from Azerbaijan.
Union Saint-Gilloise and Slavia Prague qualified directly by winning their domestic titles but operated on a different scale.
Union turned a 50 million euro ($58 million) profit on player trading, with its biggest signing just 5 million euros ($5.8 million) for Austria winger Raul Florucz.
Slavia Prague made a 25 million euro ($29 million) profit, its largest fee paid only 3.5 million euros ($4 million) for Czech midfielder Michal Sadílek from Twente.
Same competition, different financial world.
Wrexham’s climb toward the Premier League shows no sign of slowing, with its transfer dealings proving the point.
The Welsh club spent $40 million on players this summer, repeatedly breaking its own record under its Hollywood owners, Ryan Reynolds and Rob McElhenney.
The squad now competing in the second-tier Championship is almost unrecognizable compared to three years ago, when the club was in the fifth tier.
Wrexham has had a slow start to life in the Championship, winning just one of its first four games, but a fourth straight promotion still feels possible.
