Not only has the COVID-19 pandemic taken the lives of several people across the globe, the deadly virus has brought upon a horrible financial crisis, one that has reached even the footballing world. However, the pandemic has affected different leagues to different degrees.
A recent study by the CIES Football Observatory analyzed how much clubs in Europe have spent during the COVID-19 pandemic, thus taking into consideration the 2020 and 2021 summer transfer windows as well as the 2021 January winter market. One clear trend emerged: Premier League clubs outspent their fellow top-five European league rivals by a mile.
In fact, the top six clubs with the highest net expenditure were all from the English top-flight. As a whole, from the start of the pandemic to the recently-closed summer transfer window, Premier League teams have spent a combined £1.6BN ($2.2BN). To put this in perspective, Serie A came second on this list with an expenditure of £255M ($253M).
The difference only widens when Ligue 1 and the Bundesliga are brought into the equation, with the French and German top-flights' net spending being £109M ($151M) and £6.8M ($9.4M) respectively. La Liga, on the other hand, made a net profit of £171M ($236.4M).
Man Utd top the list, having an unmatched net spending of £187M ($258.5M), having recruited the likes of Jadon Sancho, Cristiano Ronaldo, Raphael Varane, and Donny van de Beek over the last three transfer windows. While Chelsea have spent the most in terms of signings, having splashed a whopping £346M ($478.4M). However, the London giants offset a huge portion of that thanks to the sales of Tammy Abraham, Kurt Zouma, and Fikayo Tomori.
Arsenal, the highest spenders of the 2021 summer transfer window, Leeds United, and Tottenham complete the top five. Man City are the second-highest spenders in Europe since the COVID-19 pandemic began, splashing £277M ($383M) but find themselves in sixth spot in terms of net spending thanks to outgoings.
Juventus (£119.3M/$165M) are the biggest net spenders outside of England while PSG and Roma are the only non-Premier League teams – alongside the Old Lady – to make the top 10. Check out the list below.
Date courtesy of CIES/image courtesy of the Daily Mail
