FIFA Global Transfer Report 2023 Men by scess1948

Sell-onfees

Inadditiontotransferfees,clubsmayalsoagreetoincludeasell-onfee,whichguaranteesthereleasingclub apercentageofthetransferfeeofapotentialfuturetransferofthesameplayertoathirdclub.Therewere 2,726transferswithasell-onfeein2023–anewall-timehighand21.9%morethanin2022.Asasell-on feecanonlybeincludedforpermanenttransfersandloans,the2,726transfersrepresented45.7%ofall transfersforwhichasell-onfeeisfeasible.

Sell-onfeesarebecomingincreasinglycommoninthemoderngame,especiallyintransfersthatalsoinclude aregulartransferfee,60.0%ofwhichincludedsuchaclausein2023.Theseclausesarerarerintransfers withoutatransferfee,andin2023just28.3%ofthesetransfersincludedasell-onfee.

Figure5:Numberoftransferswithasell-onfeebysizeofthesell-onfeeandshareoftransferswithsell-onfeesintransferswith andwithoutatransferfee(onlyconsideringpermanenttransfersandloans)

Trainingrewards

On16November2022,theFIFAClearingHousewentlivewiththeintroductionoftheFIFAClearingHouse RegulationsandcorrespondingchangestotheRSTP.Fromthatdateonwards,allplayertransfersand registrationseligiblefortrainingrewards(trainingcompensationandsolidaritycontribution)arecentrally identi��ed,automatedandprocessedviatheFIFAClearingHousesystem.

Fromapracticalperspective,thiscomprisedtheintroductionofanewElectronicPlayerPassport(EPP) processandthecreationofanew��nancialentityinParis,theFIFAClearingHouse(FCH),withtheaimof assessingclubs’compliancewith��nancialregulationsandprocessingthepayments.

In2023,19,710EPPsweregeneratedinTMS,outofwhich16,718(85%)wereclosed.Thetotalamount oftrainingrewardsallocatedtotrainingclubsviatheFIFAClearingHousesystemhasalreadyreached USD102.1million.Iftheremainingclaimsprocessedin2023relatingtotransfersthattookplacebefore 16November2022areincluded,thetotalamountallocatedin2023exceededUSD115million(around USD70millioninsolidaritycontributionandUSD45millionintrainingcompensation).Thisconstitutesan increaseofalmost35%comparedtotheUSD85.2milliondeclaredbyclubsfortransfersin2022.

ItisimportanttonotethattheamountoftrainingrewardsallocatedbytheFIFAClearingHousesystemisexpected tofurtherincreaseinfutureyears.Theamountofsolidaritycontributionpaidfortransfersthatwerecompleted in2023willcontinuetogrowinthefuture:everytimeaclubpaysaninstalmentofanagreedtransferfee,andthe allocationsforsomeofthetransfersthatoccurredin2023willonlybe��nalisedin2024.Bothoftheseeectsdid notoccurin2023asthemajortransferwindowsof2022werebeforetheintroductionoftheFCH.

Oncetheamountshavebeenallocated,theFCHentity,basedinParis,onboardstheclubsasclientsafter athoroughcomplianceassessmentandthenprocessesthepayments.The��rstpaymentsbytheFCHwere executedinJune2023.

Oneconsequenceoftheautomationoftrainingrewardsthroughthe FIFAClearingHousesystemisthattheclaimsprocessfortraining rewardswillbecomeobsoleteasofNovember2024.Thepositive eectsstartedtobecomenoticeablein2023asthenumberof submittedclaimsdecreasedbyalmostonethird,withatotalof1,529 claimssubmittedin2023comparedto2,319in2022.

Toptransfers

Figure6showsthetopteninternationalplayertransfersbytotaltransferfeein2023.Thesetentransfers alonegeneratedmorethan10%oftheentireamountspentontransferfeesin2023.Similarly,ofthe3,279 transferswithfees,thetop100wereresponsibleformorethan45%ofalltransferfeesin2023.

Figure6:Toptentransfersbytotaltransferfee(2023)

BorussiaDortmund(Germany)JudeBellinghamRealMadrid(Spain)

Benca(Portugal) EnzoFernándezChelsea(England)

TottenhamHotspur(England)HarryKaneBayernMunich(Germany)

EintrachtFrankfurt(Germany)RandalKoloMuaniParisSaint-Germain(France)

ShakhtarDonetsk(Ukraine)MykhailoMudrykChelsea(England)

Playercharacteristics

In2023,playersbetween18and23yearsofageonceagaindominatedthenumberoftransferswithfeesas wellasthetotalspendingontransferfees,claimingmorethanhalfofeachtotal.Nevertheless,theaverage transferfeewashigherformoreexperiencedplayersin2023,withclubspayingthehighestaveragefee forplayersaged30andup.

Figure7furtherrevealsthesubstantialimpactofthesmallgroupoftransferswithfeesexceeding USD5millionontheoveralltotalspendingoninternationaltransfers.The199transfersofplayersbetween theagesof18and23withsuchahightransferfeerepresentedjust6.1%ofalltransferswithfees(andless than1%ofalltransfers).Atthesametime,however,theircombinedtransferfeesaccountedformorethan 40%oftheyear’stotal.Instarkcontrast,the1,227transfersinthesameagebracketwithamaximumfee ofUSD1millionaccountedfor37.4%ofalltransferswithfees,yetonlyaccountedfor2.8%ofthetotalfees.

Figure7:SpendingontransferfeesinUSD(leftcolumns)andnumberoftransferswithtransferfees(rightcolumns)bysizeof thetransferfeeandplayerage(2023)

RBLeipzig(Germany)JoškoGvardiolManchesterCity(England)

Atalanta(Italy)RasmusHøjlundManchesterUnited(England)

ParisSaint-Germain(France)

NeymarAlHilal(SaudiArabia)

RBLeipzig(Germany)DominikSzoboszlaiLiverpool(England)

ACMilan(Italy)SandroTonaliNewcastleUnited(England)

Thereisastrongcorrelationbetweenthesizeofthetransferfeeandthedurationoftheemploymentcontract oeredtotheplayer.Intransferswithoutatransferfee,theaveragecontractdurationistypicallyalittle underone-and-a-halfyears(16.7monthsin2023).Fortransfersthatincludeafee,theaveragecontractis typicallymorethanonewholeyearlongerataround30months(30.3in2023).Asimilarrelationshipalso existswithintransferswithfees:thehigherthetransferfee,thelongerthecontractduration.

Figure8:DistributionofcontractdurationbysizeofthetransferfeeinUSD

Nationality

In2023,179dierentnationalitieswererepresentedbyatleastoneprofessionalplayerwhomovedacross borderstojoinanewclubabroad.Thetoptennationalities,intermsofthetotalnumberoftransfers andthetotalspendingontransferfeesin2023,areshowninFigure10below.WhileBrazilianplayers completedthemosttransfers(2,375),thebiggestoutlaywasonplayersfromFrance,withacombined sumofUSD1.29billionintransferfees.WhiletransfersofplayersfromtwoAfricannations–Nigeriaand Ghana–madethetoptenintermsofthenumberoftransfers,thetoptenspotsintermsofspendingwere stillheldexclusivelybynationalitiesfromSouthAmericaandEurope.

Figure10:Playernationalitiesfeaturinginatleastoneofthetoptenrankingsbynumberoftransfersandtotaltransferfees inUSD(2023,globalranksinparentheses)

Thedurationofacontractisalsocorrelatedwithtwofurtherfactors:thesalaryoeredtotheplayerand –toalesserextent–theplayer’sage.In2023,contractswithayearlytotal��xedremunerationofmorethan USD500,000hadanaveragedurationof32.3months–morethanawholeyearlongerthancontractswith lower��xedsalaries(17.4monthsonaverage).Similarly,youngerplayerstypicallyreceivelongercontracts thanolderteam-mates:theaveragedurationofacontractforplayersundertheageof24tendstobemore than��vemonthslongerthanforthoseaged24andolder(21.7v.16.3months).

Figure9:Distributionofcontractdurationbyplayer’syearlytotalxedremunerationandage

872(4) Transfers +3.0% Growthintransfers 517.4m(4) Transferfees(USD) +108.0% Growthinfees

PORTUGUESE

250(24) Transfers -10.4%

442(10) Transfers +9.4% Growthintransfers

397.4m(6) Transferfees(USD) +3.1% Growthinfees

SPANISH

619(8) Transfers +2.1% Growthintransfers

280.2m(9) Transferfees(USD) +6.7% Growthinfees

965(3) Transfers +4.7% Growthintransfers 1,292.4m(1) Transferfees(USD) +120.1% Growthinfees

Transfersbyconfederation

Asinpreviousyears,clubsfromUEFAdominatedboththenumberoftransfersandtheamountspent ontransferfeesin2023.Forthe��rsttimesince2016,however,thetotalspendingofEuropeanclubs (USD7.79billion)stayedbelowtheirtotalreceipts(USD8.43billion).AsshowninFigure12,thiswaslargely duetotheincreasedspendingofclubsintheAFConplayersfromEuropeanclubs,anamountthatreached USD1.15billionin2023comparedtoUSD93.9millionintheyearbefore.

Figure11:Transfersandtransferfeesbyconfederationoftheclubsinvolved(2023)

Figure12:StreamsoftransfersandtransferfeesinUSDwithinandbetweenconfederations(2023)

Transfersbyassociation

Forthesecondyearinarow,Portugueseclubsledthewayforincomingtransfers,withatotalof1,017such transfers.ClubsfromBrazilreleasedthehighestnumberofplayers,withatotalof1,217outgoingtransfers. Infact,thenumber-onetransferstreamin2023wasplayersmovingfromBraziltoPortugal(414transfers).

ClubsfromEnglandwereonceagain,byalongway,thebiggestspenders.Theirtotaloutlaynearlyhitthe USD3billionmark,buttheystillsetanewhighofalmostUSD2.96billion.England’sdominantroleisalso reectedinthetop��vestreamsoftransferfees,fourofwhichhadEnglandontheengagingside.Clubsfrom SaudiArabiafeaturedamongthetop��vespendersforthe��rsttimewithatotaloutlayofUSD970.0million in2023,comparedtoUSD50.4millionin2022.

ClubsfromGermanywerethenumber-onerecipientsoftransferfeeswithatotalofalmostUSD1.21billion, the��rst-evertimethatclubsfromanyoneassociationhavereceivedmorethanUSD1billionintransfer feesinacalendaryear.Thatbeingsaid,threemoreassociationsalsojoinedGermanyinthisexclusive groupin2023:France(withtotalreceiptsofUSD1.19billion),England(withUSD1.04billion)andItaly(with USD1.02billion).

Figure13:Associationsfeaturinginatleastoneofthetoptenrankingsbyincomingtransfers,outgoingtransfers,spendingon transferfeesorreceiptsfromtransferfees(2023,globalranksinparentheses)

NETHERLANDS

306(16) Transfersin 383(13) Transfersout

318.6m(7) Spending(USD) 529.5m(6) Receipts(USD)

681(3)

Transfersin 838(2)

Transfersout

428(10)

Figure14:Transferstreamsfeaturinginatleastoneofthetopverankingsbynumberoftransfersortotaltransferfees (2023,globalranksinparentheses)

ReleasingassociationTransferfees(USD)TransfersEngagingassociation

BELGIUM

402(12)

Transfersin 430(11)

Transfersout

241.5m(10) Spending(USD) 355.4m(8) Receipts(USD) USA

Transfersin 405(12) Transfersout

2,956.6m(1) Spending(USD) 1,041.4m(3) Receipts(USD)

FRANCE

GERMANY

455(8)

Transfersin 558(8)

Transfersout

850.7m(4) Spending(USD) 1,209.5m(1) Receipts(USD)

ITALY

Receipts(USD)

203.1m(12) Spending(USD) 139.4m(16)

487(5) Transfersin 685(6) Transfersout

991.8m(2) Spending(USD) 1,193.5m(2) Receipts(USD)

1,017(1)

Transfersin 731(4) Transfersout

269.3m(8) Spending(USD) 522.3m(7) Receipts(USD)

COLOMBIA

236(23) Transfersin 465(9) Transfersout

1.7m(53)

Spending(USD) 50.1m(25) Receipts(USD)

597(4)

Transfersin 773(3) Transfersout

469.2m(6) Spending(USD) 716.8m(5) Receipts(USD)

BRAZIL

922(2) Transfersin 1,217(1) Transfersout 146.2m(13) Spending(USD) 314.9m(9) Receipts(USD)

ARGENTINA

471(6) Transfersin 700(5) Transfersout

86.7m(16) Spending(USD) 276.8m(10) Receipts(USD)

NIGERIA

72(93) Transfersin 445(10) Transfersout -(102) Spending(USD) 5.1m(57) Receipts(USD)

428(10)

442(9)

Transfersin 561(7) Transfersout

757.6m(5) Spending(USD) 1,021.0m(4) Receipts(USD)

325.7m(5)31(80)

30.4m(63)80(3)

16.6m(97)188(2)

TÜRKIYE

Transfersin 337(15)

Transfersout

260.6m(9) Spending(USD) 161.2m(14) Receipts(USD)

SAUDIARABIA

456(7)

Transfersin 233(26) Transfersout

970.0m(3) Spending(USD) 16.9m(39) Receipts(USD)

6.8m(175)414(1)

Thescatterplotbelowshowshowclubsfromdierentmemberassociationsperformedinrespectof transferfees.Themajorityofassociationscanbefoundabovethediagonalline,whichmeansthattheir clubsreceivedmorefromoutgoingtransfersthantheyspentonincomingtransfers.

Inadditiontotheassociationsshowninthegraphbelow,therewere25associationswithclubsthatreceived transferfeesforoutgoingtransfersbutnoclubsthatspentanymoneyontransferfees.Similarly,tenassociations hadclubswithspendingontransferfeesbutnonewithreceiptsfromoutgoingtransfers.

Figure15:Distributionofassociationsbyspendingonandreceiptsfromtransferfees(2023)

Figure16:Numberofclubsbytypeoftransferactivity(2023)

Clubcharacteristics

Some64.4%ofthe4,971clubsthatwereactivelyinvolvedininternationaltransfersin2023onlycompleted incomingtransfersanddidnotreleaseaplayertoanotherclubabroad.The1,486clubsthatmadeboth incomingandoutgoingtransfersrepresented29.9%ofthetotal,whiletheremaining285clubs(5.7%) releasedatleastoneplayerinternationallybutdidnothaveanyincominginternationaltransfers.

Itmayseemlikemostclubsareonlyengagingbutnotreleasinganyplayersinternationally.Itshouldbe noted,however,thattransfersofplayersmovingoutofcontracttypicallydonotinvolveareleasingclub, buttheystillmakeupmorethan60%ofalltransfers.Transfersforwhicharelease(buy-out)clausewas activatedaretheonlyexceptiontothisrule;theseareout-of-contracttransfersbuttheyofcourserequirethe activeinvolvementofthereleasingclub.Thereisalsogreatvariationinthenumberoftransferscompleted byindividualclubs;whilethevastmajorityofclubscompletednomorethan��vetransfers,therewerealso severalclubsthatmademorethan20transfersin2023alone.

Figure17:Numberofclubsbynumberofincomingandoutgoingtransfers(2023)