The summer transfer window saw Premier League spending hit a record £1.165bn, a 34% increase on last year’s record of £870m, showing a rise in spending for the fourth year in a row
According to analysis from Deloitte’s Sport Business Group, Premier League clubs spent more than £155m on transfer deadline day, breaking the previous record of £140m set during the summer 2013 window.
The average gross spend for a Premier League club in the summer window was £60m.
The total spending by clubs in 2016 also hit a new record of £1.34bn, with clubs buying players during both the January (£175m) and summer windows.
Since the transfer window system was introduced spending has reached over £8.6bn, with 80% being spent in the summer window.
Dan Jones, partner in the Sports Business Group at Deloitte, said: ‘This is the fourth consecutive year the summer transfer spending record by Premier League clubs has been broken. At the start of the 2013/14 season, the summer transfer spending record had stood at £500m, and the fact that this record has more than doubled since then is a clear indicator of the financial growth of the league.’
Player Paul Pogba’s transfer to Manchester United from Juventus broke the record for the highest fee ever paid at £89m.
John stones was sold to Manchester City from Everton for £47.5m, his value rising by £44.5m in three years.
Liverpool’s Mario Balotelli was released to Nice for no fee resulting in his value decreasing by £16m.
David Luiz moves back to former club Chelsea for a £32m fee but has lost £18m in value over two seasons.
Jones said: ‘We also saw a new record level of Premier League summer deadline day spending this window, with £155m spent in the final 24 hours. This, when considered with a new overall spending record, as well as the fact this summer saw a new record for the highest fee paid for a player by any English club are further indicators of the ever increasing purchasing power of the Premier League.
‘This summer saw a record £215m gross spend by Championship clubs, more than twice the previous record, driven by the investment of recently relegated clubs seeking an immediate return to the Premier League as well as by that of ambitious Championship clubs seeking entry to the world’s richest football league.’
