With transfer activity wrapping up across most domestic leagues, here’s a look at the highest-spending divisions in football this season.
6. Championship – £357m
The financial strength of English football is evident here, with the Championship ranking as the sixth-highest spending league globally. Clubs in England’s second tier invested over £350m on new players for the 2025-26 season, driven by the ambitious signings of Birmingham City and Wrexham from League One.
Both clubs were among the top five spenders, but it was Ipswich and Southampton, benefitting from Premier League parachute payments, who led the expenses. Ipswich set a Championship record by spending £17.5m on teenage winger Sindre Walle Egeli in August.
5. Saudi Pro League – £492m
The Saudi Pro League made a splash in football transfers but reduced its spending a bit last summer.
Saudi clubs spent nearly £500m on new players, featuring notable acquisitions like Serie A top-scorer Mateo Retegui and former Liverpool forward Darwin Nunez during the 2025-26 season.
4. Ligue 1 – £641m
Ligue 1 ranks fourth for spending in the 2025-26 season, with a relatively cautious investment approach. Only three players were signed for over €30m, the most significant being the £57m transfer of Ilia Zabaryni to Paris Saint-Germain from Bournemouth.
Marseille was the only other club to make a signing exceeding €30m, bringing winger Igor Paixao from Feyenoord.
3. La Liga – £656m
La Liga once led the world in spending. Of the seven times the global transfer record was broken this century, five were by La Liga clubs.
However, it has been over a decade since La Liga held that title, as spending has slowed significantly. Barcelona‘s financial issues and Real Madrid‘s more restrained strategy, focusing on high-profile free agents, have shifted their approach.
This season, only Atletico Madrid is among the top 10 clubs for spending, while Real Madrid ranks in the top 10 for net spend.
2. Serie A – £1.23 billion
Only two leagues exceeded £1 billion in transfer spending for 2025-26.
Serie A has achieved this milestone, nearly doubling La Liga’s figures. Italian clubs had substantial funds to reinvest, with notable sales including Victor Osimhen, Mateo Retegui, Tijjani Reijnders, and Dan Ndoye.
Five teams surpassed €100m in spending, including the ambitious Como. Despite the overall high spending, the highest individual transfer fee was only £36m.
The Premier League continues to dominate, with English clubs spending over £3.5bn on new signings in the 2025-26 season. Liverpool set a record by spending £446m in a single transfer window, breaking the British transfer record for both Florian Wirtz and Alexander Isak.
Arsenal leads in net expenditure, a strategy that has paid off as they top the table.
The Premier League’s spending alone surpassed that of the other five leagues combined.
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