Mercato: a record transfer market in 2023 with 8.9 billion euros in spending

While the 2024 winter transfer window continues calmly, Fifa has just published this Tuesday the staggering figures for the transfer market in 2023. Over the year, the global market broke spending records, with 9.63 billion dollars (around 8.89 billion euros) injected, or 2 billion more than the previous record recorded in 2019.

This sum also represents a clear increase compared to 2022 (+ 48.1%) when spending on the transfer market started to rise again after two years of decline, linked to the Covid-19 pandemic.

🚨 FIFA has published its Global Transfer Market report 2⃣0⃣2⃣3⃣

🤝 74,836 international transfers concluded: A record

📈 USD 9.63 billion was spent on the international transfer market, an increase of 48.1%

ℹ More info👉 https://t.co/6O6OSaw2vo pic.twitter.com/TIRnGOl5Pp

— FIFA (French) (@fifacom_fr) January 30, 2024

The ten largest transfers represent 10% of the total transfer fees paid in 2023. In particular those of Jude Bellingham from Borussia Dortmund to Real Madrid, Enzo Fernandez from Benfica Lisbon to Chelsea, Harry Kane from Tottenham to Bayern Munich or Randal Kolo Muani from Frankfurt to Paris SG.

As in 2022, it was the English clubs, led by Chelsea, who were the biggest spenders with nearly three billion dollars paid over the entire year 2023 (2.96 billion euros).

Along with Chelsea, Paris SG, Liverpool, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich are among the five clubs that spent the most on the transfer market in 2023.

“Impressive” growth among women

In the opposite direction, German clubs, boosted by the sales of Bellingham or Kolo Muani, received the highest total in the world with transfer earnings of more than $1.2 billion.

With 1,017 arrivals in their leagues, Portuguese clubs welcomed the most players from clubs in other member associations, while Brazilian clubs accounted for the highest number of outgoing transfers, with 1,217 players who left to monetize their talents outside Brazil in 2023.

Read alsoMercato Ligue 1: are you an expert on the hottest transfers of the summer?

The Fifa report also points to “the impressive growth” of women’s football in terms of investments in the transfer markets.

In 2023, 623 professional clubs were involved in international transfers, compared to 507 in 2022, for a total of 1,888 international transfers of professional players recorded during the year, compared to 1,571 in 2022.