Europe's big five leagues spent a record $4.21 billion in the summer transfer window, according to a study published on Wednesday by FIFA.
The total amount of money spent by clubs in England, Spain, Germany, Italy and France was up 6.6 percent on the $3.95 billion spent in the same transfer window last year.
Premier League clubs spent a record total of $1.44 billion, while the increase in spending was greatest in Italy, where it was up almost 75%.https://t.co/H9VMuyXA7o
— The Field (@thefield_in) September 13, 2018
The English Premier League unsurprisingly contributed more than any other league, but while its 20 clubs spent a combined $1.44 billion, the increase in spending was greatest in Italy, where it was up almost 75 percent.
That was fuelled to a large extent by Cristiano Ronaldo's 100 million-euro move from Real Madrid to Juventus, while spending by clubs in Spain's La Liga rose 42.2 percent.
Summer spending by clubs of the Big 5 surpasses USD 4 billion, driving global spending to new record highs: https://t.co/KQR6WsNuE2
— FIFA Media (@fifamedia) September 12, 2018
Worldwide, the amount of money spent between June 1 and September 1 hit a record $5.44 billion, as 182 of FIFA's 211 member associations had their transfer window open.
The results are taken from analysis of FIFA's own International Transfer Matching System, which registers all completed transfers.
