Football’s summer transfer window closed with a bang, leaving behind a trail of eye-watering spending. While the Premier League once again flexed its massive financial muscle, one German club truly stood out. Bayer Leverkusen was the sole non-English team to crack the top 10 for club spending on new players. This signals a shifting dynamic, even as Italy’s Serie A consistently gives England a run for its money.
Leverkusen, who finished as German vice-champions last season, made history with their spending spree. They shelled out an incredible €198.15 million, setting a new Bundesliga record for investment. This made them the ninth-highest spending club globally as the window closed. Their ambitious recruitment drive brought in 17 new faces. Notable additions included Malik Tillman from PSV Eindhoven and Jarell Quansah from Liverpool, both costing €35 million each. They also secured Eliesse Ben Seghir from Monaco for €32 million, Ezequiel Fernández from Al Qadsiah for €25 million, and Loic Badé from Sevilla for another €25 million. Veteran Lucas Vázquez joined from Real Madrid, and Manchester City’s Claudio Echeverri arrived on loan. Leverkusen truly meant business, orchestrating three of Germany’s five biggest deals.
Across Europe, the sheer scale of investment was staggering. The Premier League remained the undisputed leader, setting a global record with €3.59 billion spent. Italy’s Serie A, however, continued to chase closely, securing the second spot for the sixth straight year with €1.19 billion in expenditures. Germany’s Bundesliga also hit a new summer high, spending €851.43 million. This busy period also saw its share of drama, including the firing of Dutch coach Erik ten Hag after just three matches.
German football saw some high-profile moves beyond Leverkusen’s spree. The biggest transfer in Germany involved Luis Díaz, the former FC Porto forward, who moved from English champions Liverpool to Bayern Munich for €70 million. This was a significant coup for Bayern, who had previously dethroned Leverkusen for the title in the 2024/25 season. Díaz was one of just two players not directly linked to a Premier League deal who still made the top 10 highest transfers of the summer. The other was Nigerian striker Victor Osimhen, who joined Turkish champions Galatasaray from Italian champions Napoli for €75 million after a successful loan spell.
Bayern Munich was busy, bringing in Nicolas Jackson on loan from Chelsea for €16.5 million, Jonathan Tah from Leverkusen for €2 million, and Tom Bischof from Hoffenheim for €300,000. They also saw some famous names depart, like the legendary Thomas Müller heading to Vancouver Whitecaps, and Mathys Tel moving to Tottenham for €35 million (with a buy option activated). Kingsley Coman joined Al Nassr for €25 million, Leroy Sané went to Galatasaray, Eric Dier moved to Monaco, and João Palhinha joined Tottenham on a €5 million loan. Bayern was the fourth-highest spender in the German league. Borussia Dortmund spent €99.7 million, adding Jobe Bellingham from Sunderland for €30.5 million and Fábio Silva from Wolverhampton for €22.5 million. Meanwhile, Leipzig, despite not being in European competitions, spent €136 million on players like Conrad Harder from Sporting for €24 million and Johan Bakayoko from PSV Eindhoven for €18 million. Leipzig also made big money from sales, earning €160.1 million, the eighth-highest global revenue. They sold Benjamin Sesko to Manchester United for €76.5 million and Xavi Simons to Tottenham for €65 million. Alongside Leverkusen, Leipzig was one of only two non-English clubs in the top 10 for revenue. Leverkusen’s impressive €229.5 million in sales, the third-highest globally, came mainly from Florian Wirtz (€125 million) and Jeremie Frimpong (€40 million) both moving to Liverpool.
Italy’s Serie A also saw plenty of action. AC Milan led the charge with €164 million in spending. They signed Christopher Nkunku from Chelsea for €37 million and Ardon Jashari from Club Brugge for €36 million. Veteran Luka Modric also joined them after 13 seasons at Real Madrid. Milan funded some of this by selling Tijjani Reijnders to Manchester City for €55 million and Theo Hernández to Al Hilal for €25 million, though they are not competing in UEFA tournaments. Juventus, however, is in UEFA competitions and spent €137.3 million. They brought in Francisco Conceição (€32 million) and João Mário (€12 million) from FC Porto, along with Lois Openda on loan from Leipzig and Jonathan David from Lille. Atalanta invested €25 million of their €125.8 million total on Nikola Krstovic from Lecce, managing to keep Ademola Lookman despite one of the summer’s most talked-about transfer sagas. Napoli, with €115 million in spending, secured two-time English League Player of the Year Kevin De Bruyne on a free transfer from Manchester City. They also added Sam Beukema from Bologna for €31 million, Noa Lang from PSV Eindhoven for €25 million, and Miguel Gutiérrez from Girona for €18 million, plus Rasmus Hojlund on loan from Manchester United. Inter Milan spent €92.7 million, bringing in Luis Henrique from Marseille (€23 million), Ange-Yoan Bonny from Parma (€23 million), Andy Diouf from Lens (€20 million), and Petar Sucic from Dinamo Zagreb (€14 million). They also got Manuel Akanji on loan from Manchester City for €1 million.
Spain’s La Liga saw a spending surge, hitting €684.02 million, its highest since a record €1.55 billion in 2019/20. This was driven by rivals Atlético Madrid (€176 million) and Real Madrid (€167.5 million). Atlético’s new faces included Álex Baena from Villarreal for €42 million, David Hancko from Feyenoord for €26 million, and Johnny Cardoso from Real Betis for €24 million, along with Nico González on loan from Juventus for €1 million. Real Madrid’s spending was their highest since 2019/20. They fortified their squad with Dean Huijsen from Bournemouth for €62.5 million, Álvaro Carreras from Benfica for €50 million, Franco Mastantuono from River Plate for €45 million, and Trent Alexander-Arnold from Liverpool for €10 million. Villarreal also spent €102 million, including Georges Mikautadze from Lyon for €31 million and Renato Veiga from Chelsea for €24.5 million. FC Barcelona, by contrast, spent a more modest €27.5 million, signing Joan García from Espanyol for €25 million and Roony Bardghji from Copenhagen for €2.5 million, and bringing in Marcus Rashford on loan from Manchester United.
France’s Ligue 1 had a positive financial balance, similar to the Bundesliga, with €661.51 million spent. Strasbourg was surprisingly prominent, spending €127.5 million, led by Julio Enciso from Brighton for €18.5 million. This spending surpassed that of four-time French champions and European title holders Paris Saint-Germain, who spent €103 million. PSG added Illya Zabarnyi from Bournemouth for €63 million and Lucas Chevalier from Lille for €40 million, with Chevalier taking over from Gianluigi Donnarumma, who moved to Manchester City for €30 million.
For the second consecutive summer, the major European leagues also faced competition from Saudi Arabia. The Saudi League’s transfer window was still open and had already seen €473.52 million spent. While this is less than their peak of €973.6 million in 2023/24, it still made a significant impact. Noteworthy transfers included Mateo Retegui to Al Qadsiah for €68.25 million, Darwin Núñez to Al Hilal for €53 million, and João Félix joining Al Nassr for €30 million. Al Nassr is coached by Jorge Jesus and captained by Cristiano Ronaldo, marking Ronaldo’s first experience playing outside of Europe.