The winter transfer window is now closed in most leagues. Time to take stock. Once again, records have been broken, but not in terms of spending, as a glance at FIFA statistics reveals.
As the world governing body confirmed on Thursday, 5,973 international transfers were made in the last transfer window in men’s professional soccer, more than ever before – an increase of 3 percent compared to the previous record set in 2025. In Germany, there were 133 arrivals and 129 departures. The transfers were therefore roughly balanced. The figures refer only to international transfers and therefore explicitly exclude national transfers, which experts say are usually 2 to 2.5 times higher.
However, clubs around the world were more frugal. Although more than €1.65 billion was spent, this was around 18 percent less than in January 2025, when €2.37 billion was spent, but still more than 20 percent more than in January 2023 (€1.36 billion).
England pays the most, France collects
Unsurprisingly, English clubs are at the forefront of transfer fee spending with around €308 million, followed by Italy (€240 million), Brazil (€153 million), Germany (€107 million), and France (€102 million). In terms of revenue, France is in the lead with €185 million, followed by Italy (€148 million), Brazil (€131 million), England (€127 million), and Spain (€118 million). Only €49.7 million flowed into Germany last winter.
Incidentally, the majority of transfers involved players without contracts, 3,564 of whom changed clubs – accounting for 59 percent of all international transfers. The rest were divided between loans (1,413 transfers, 24 percent) and permanent transfers (996 in total, 17 percent).
New records for women’s soccer too
Records were also broken in women’s soccer. For the first time, clubs paid more than €8.5 million for international transfers in a winter transfer window, representing a whopping 85 percent increase on the previous record set in January 2025.
In total, there were more than 420 international transfers in professional women’s soccer, six percent less than in January 2025. Here, too, English clubs dominated.
