A year on from the record-breaking summer transfer window of 2024, these are more circumspect times in the Premier League.
Overall spending broke through the £2 billion barrier this time last year. As the deadline passed on August 30, clubs had a combined outlay of £1.9 billion, although the most significant difference was in terms of net spend.
Across the Premier League, net spend was at minus £1.05bn over the course of last summer. This year, it is little more than half of that at £610m.
These are still figures to dwarf rival leagues across Europe and the Saudi Pro League has been considerably less active this close season, Ivan Toney's deadline day switch to Al Ahli notwithstanding. Nevertheless, spending across the window being more restrained feels notable, coming as it does on the back of the first season when the Premier League's Profit and Sustainability Rules showed their teeth.
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Premier League club spending in 2024/25 transfer window
Given the fast-spinning transfer carousel that is Chelsea's Clearlake era, it was no surprise to see the west London outfit being the only club to have spent in excess of £200m once deadline day rolled around. The Blues have been able to supplement this with a decent number of sales, however, and their net spend differential is only the sixth highest in the division.
Leading the way are Brighton, finally able to cash in a little on years of selling stars such as Moises Caicedo, Alexis Mac Allister and Ben White for big money. Ipswich and Southampton have each spent in the region of £100m on their return to the Premier League.
Manchester City and Liverpool, the two strongest sides of this era, have the lowest expenditure figures, while Arsenal spent less than the aforementioned promoted clubs. Even as Arne Slot settles into life as Jurgen Klopp's successor, this shows the value of having settled high-quality squads at a time when the market is not at its most buoyant.
Transfer figures via Transfermarkt as of August 30, 2024; clubs listed in order of net spend
| Club | Expenditure | Income | Net spend |
|---|---|---|---|
| Brighton | £194.7m | £28.8m | -£165.9m |
| Ipswich | £106.5m | £1.4m | -£105.1m |
| Man United | £180.7m | £86.75m | -£93.95m |
| West Ham | £121.6m | £37.7m | -£83.9m |
| Tottenham | £125.4m | £42.3m | -£83.1m |
| Chelsea | £219.8m | £147.4m | -£72.4m |
| Southampton | £98.6m | £35m | -£63.6m |
| Leicester | £73.1m | £29.8m | -£43.3m |
| Bournemouth | £87.9m | £55.6m | -£32.3m |
| Aston Villa | £148.4m | £122.1m | -£26.3m |
| Arsenal | £91.7m | £69.9m | -£21.8m |
| Brentford | £82.5m | £62.75m | -£19.75m |
| Fulham | £77.1m | £57.95m | -£19.15m |
| N. Forest | £93.95m | £75.2m | -£18.75m |
| Liverpool | £35.4m | £39.6m | +£4.2m |
| Newcastle | £57.4m | £64.2m | +£6.8m |
| Crystal Palace | £65.5m | £84.8m | +18.9m |
| Wolves | £62.7m | £90.5m | +27.8m |
| Everton | £42.3m | £70.45m | +£28.15m |
| Man City | £21.1 | £118.75 | +£97.65m |
| TOTAL | £1.9bn | £1.29bn | -£610m |
Most expensive Premier League transfers 2024/25
Chelsea's rampant activity in terms of both incoming and outgoings gave them two of the biggest six signings in terms of initial transfer fees, with forwards Pedro Neto and Joao Feix No. 3 and No. 6 respectively.
Erik ten Hag refitted his defence after signing an extended contract at Manchester United, with Leny Yoro and Matthijs de Ligt coming in at significant expense before the long-running pursuit of Paris Saint-Germain defensive midfielder Manuel Ugarte was completed prior to the deadline. The new footballing operation at Old Trafford will hope they prove to be excellent business in the long term.
The most expensive signing in the Premier League this summer was Dominic Solanke, who moved to Tottenham from Bournemouth tasked with the considerable undertaking of filling Harry Kane's shoes. Manchester City's very healthy net spend calculation was largely accounted for by Julian Alvarez joining Atletico Madrid and becoming the club's record sale.
Atletico, Juventus and Bayern Munich (twice) account for four of the top 10 sales by Premier League clubs. Bayern, with their purchase of Kane, were the only European club responsible for top 10 outgoing last year. Whether this is an outlier or the start of the PSR era bringing the Premier League back into the pack remains to be seen.
Incoming
All figures are initial transfer fees via Transfermarkt as of August 30, 2023.
| Player | From | To | Transfer fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Dominic Solanke | Bournemouth | Tottenham | £55m |
| Leny Yoro | Lille | Man United | £52m |
| Pedro Neto | Wolves | Chelsea | £51.4m |
| Amadou Onana | Everton | Aston Villa | £50m |
| Manuel Ugarte | PSG | Man United | £42.1m |
| Joao Felix | Atletico Madrid | Chelsea | £42m |
| Max Kilman | Wolves | West Ham | £40m |
| Georginio Rutter | Leeds United | Brighton | £39.3m |
| Matthijs de Ligt | Bayern Munich | Man United | £38.6m |
| Riccardo Calfiori | Bologna | Arsenal | £37.9m |
Outgoing
All figures are initial transfer fees via Transfermarkt as of August 30, 2024.
| Player | From | To | Transfer fee |
|---|---|---|---|
| Julian Alvarez | Man City | Atletico Madrid | £64m |
| Dominic Solanke | Bournemouth | Tottenham | £55m |
| Moussa Diaby | Aston Villa | Al Ittihad | £51.9m |
| Pedro Neto | Wolves | Chelsea | £51.4m |
| Amadou Onana | Everton | Aston Villa | £50m |
| Michael Olise | Crystal Palace | Bayern Munich | £44.6m |
| Douglas Luiz | Aston Villa | Juventus | £43.36m |
| Joao Palhinha | Fulham | Bayern Munich | £43.1m |
| Max Kilman | Wolves | West Ham | £40m |
| Ian Maatsen | Chelsea | Aston Villa | £37.5m |
Premier League 2024/25 TV channels, live streams
| Region | TV | Streaming |
| Australia | — | Optus Sport |
| Canada | — | |
| India | Star Sports | Disney+, Hotstar, JioTV |
| UK | Sky Sports, TNT Sports | NOW TV, Sky Go, Amazon Prime, Discovery Plus |
| USA | USA Network, Telemundo, Universo |
Fubo, Peacock |
UK: Matches are carried across Sky Sports and TNT Sports' streaming and TV platforms, with select matches on Amazon Prime. TNT Sports can be streamed via Discovery Plus.
USA: Select matches are televised on USA Network (English) and Telemundo or Universo (Spanish), and all three channels can be streamed on Fubo. The rest of the matches are streamed on NBC platform Peacock for subscribers.
Canada: Every Premier League game this season is live streamed exclusively via Fubo in Canada.
Australia: Fans in Australia can stream every match live and on demand on Optus Sport.
India: Star Sports network has the rights to show Premier League matches in India. As well as an English broadcast on Star Sports Select, select matches will be available via regional feeds on Star Sports 3 (in Bengali, English, Kannada, Malayalam), Star Sports 1 (Bangla) and Star Sports 1 (Tamil).