Progression of the British football transfer fee record

The progression of the British football transfer fee record tracks the increases in the record for the highest transfer fee paid or received by British association football clubs. A transfer fee is the sum of money paid by one club to purchase the contract, and therefore the playing services, of a professional footballer. Fees are not generally formally disclosed by the clubs involved, and discrepancies can occur in figures quoted in the press. Trevor Francis, for example, is regarded as Britain's first £1m player but was officially transferred for £975,000. The generally reported figure of £1,180,000 included Value Added Tax, fees to the Football League and Francis' signing fee.[1] Discrepancies may also occur due to deals which involve additional sums to be paid at a later date after a player has made a certain number of appearances, joint fees for two or more players, or deals in which one player is exchanged for a sum of money plus another player.

The first three-figure transfer fee was the £100 paid by Aston Villa in 1893 for Willie Groves. Eleven years later, Alf Common joined Middlesbrough for the first four-figure fee, a sum which caused a national sensation and outrage amongst the football authorities.[2] The £5,000 mark was first reached in 1922 when Falkirk paid that amount for West Ham United's Syd Puddefoot, and six years later Arsenal paid the first £10,000 fee to acquire David Jack of Bolton Wanderers. After the Second World War, the spending power of clubs in mainland Europe outstripped that of British clubs for the first time, resulting in several substantial jumps in the transfer record. John Charles became the first player from Britain to command a fee of £50,000 when he joined Juventus in 1957, and four years later Denis Law joined Torino in the first £100,000 transaction involving a British club.

The 1970s saw a rapid increase in transfer fees. Martin Peters became the first £200,000 player in 1970, but by 1977 Kevin Keegan's move to West Germany's Hamburger SV had taken the record to £500,000. In January 1979 David Mills became the first player to be purchased for £500,000 by a British club, but just one month later Nottingham Forest paid twice that amount to acquire Birmingham City's Trevor Francis. In 1981 Bryan Robson cost Manchester United £1,500,000, but fees paid by British clubs lagged behind those paid by clubs in Italy, France and Spain. The fees paid by the Premier League's top clubs began to increase at a rapid rate, with Alan Shearer commanding the first £15,000,000 fee in 1996, and the new millennium heralding the first £30,000,000 transfer, although sources differ as to whether this barrier was broken by Rio Ferdinand's move to Manchester United in 2002 or Andriy Shevchenko's transfer to Chelsea four years later.

On 1 September 2008, Manchester City agreed a reported £32,500,000 fee for Robinho,[3] which remained the record amount paid by a British club until 31 January 2011, when Liverpool paid £35,000,000 for Andy Carroll from Newcastle United, which was also a new record amount paid for a British player. A few hours later, the record amount paid by a British club was broken again when Chelsea paid £50,000,000 for Fernando Torres from Liverpool.

On 11 June 2009, Manchester United announced that they had accepted an £80,000,000 bid from Real Madrid for Cristiano Ronaldo. The transfer was completed on 1 July 2009, setting not only a new British transfer record, but also a new world record (either in pounds or euros).[4] In turn, that record was broken on 1 September 2013 when Real announced that their £85.3 million (€100 million) purchase of Gareth Bale from Tottenham Hotspur had been completed.[5] This record was broken on 8 August 2016, when Manchester United signed Paul Pogba from Juventus for a fee of £89 million, again on 6 January 2018, when Philippe Coutinho moved to Barcelona from Liverpool for a reported initial fee of £105 million, which could rise to £142 million with various clauses being met.

On 31 January 2023, the record was broken when Chelsea signed Argentine player Enzo Fernández for a reported deal of £106.8 million.

Record progression

Date Player From To Fee Reference
18931893 Willie Groves West Bromwich Albion Aston Villa £100 [6]
1899April 1899 Jimmy Settle Bury Everton £400 [7]
1903October 1903 Benny Green Barnsley Small Heath £500 [8]
1904January 1904 Andy McCombie Sunderland Newcastle United £700 [9]
1905February 1905 Alf Common Sunderland Middlesbrough £1,000 [10]
1907November 1907 George Wilson Everton Newcastle United £1,600 [11]
1911 (1)February 1911 John Simpson Falkirk Blackburn Rovers £1,800 [12]
1911 (2)October 1911 Billy Hibbert Bury Newcastle United £1,950 [13]
1913November 1913 George Utley Barnsley Sheffield United £2,000 [14]
1914February 1914 Percy Dawson Heart of Midlothian Blackburn Rovers £2,500 [15]
March 1920 Joe Lane Blackpool Birmingham £3,650 [16]
May 1920 Johnny Crosbie Ayr United Birmingham £3,700 [17]
November 1920 Stan Fazackerley Sheffield United Everton £4,000 [18]
December 1920 David Mercer Hull City Sheffield United £4,500 [19]
1922 (1)February 1922 Syd Puddefoot West Ham United Falkirk £5,000 [10]
1922 (2)March 1922 Warney Cresswell South Shields Sunderland £5,500 [10]
1923November 1923 Andy Wilson Middlesbrough Chelsea £6,500 [20]
1927April 1927 Jimmy Gibson Partick Thistle Aston Villa £7,500 [21]
1928October 1928 David Jack Bolton Wanderers Arsenal £10,647 [22]
1938August 1938 Bryn Jones Wolverhampton Wanderers Arsenal £14,000 [23]
1947 (1)September 1947 Billy Steel Morton Derby County £15,500 [24]
1947 (2)November 1947 Tommy Lawton Chelsea Notts County £20,000 [25][26]
1948February 1948 Len Shackleton Newcastle United Sunderland £20,500 [27][28]
1949 (1)February 1949 Johnny Morris Manchester United Derby County £24,000 [10]
1949 (2)December 1949 Eddie Quigley Sheffield Wednesday Preston North End £26,500 [10]
1950October 1950 Trevor Ford Aston Villa Sunderland £30,000 [29]
1951March 1951 Jackie Sewell Notts County Sheffield Wednesday £34,500 [29]
1955July 1955 Eddie Firmani Charlton Athletic Sampdoria £35,000 [29]
1957April 1957 John Charles Leeds United Juventus £65,000 [29]
1961June 1961 Gerry Hitchens Aston Villa Internazionale £85,000 [29]
1962July 1962 Denis Law Torino Manchester United £115,000 [29]
1968January 1968 Martin Chivers Southampton Tottenham Hotspur £125,000 [30]
1968June 1968 Allan Clarke Fulham Leicester City £150,000 [29]
1969June 1969 Allan Clarke Leicester City Leeds United £165,000 [29]
1970March 1970 Martin Peters West Ham United Tottenham Hotspur £200,000 [29]
1971December 1971 Alan Ball Everton Arsenal £220,000 [29]
1972August 1972 David Nish Leicester City Derby County £225,000 [31]
1974January 1974 Alan Hudson Chelsea Stoke City £240,000 [32]
1974February 1974 Bob Latchford Birmingham City Everton £350,000 [33]
1977June 1977 Kevin Keegan Liverpool Hamburger SV £500,000 [34]
1979 (1)January 1979 David Mills Middlesbrough West Bromwich Albion £516,000 [34]
1979 (2)February 1979 Trevor Francis Birmingham City Nottingham Forest £1,180,000 [29]
1979 (3)September 1979 Steve Daley Wolverhampton Wanderers Manchester City £1,450,000 [29]
1979 (4)September 1979 Andy Gray Aston Villa Wolverhampton Wanderers £1,469,000 [29]
1981October 1981 Bryan Robson West Bromwich Albion Manchester United £1,500,000 [29]
1984May 1984 Ray Wilkins Manchester United Milan £1,500,000 [29]
1986May 1986 Mark Hughes Manchester United Barcelona £2,300,000 [29]
1987June 1987 Ian Rush Liverpool Juventus £3,200,000 [29]
1989July 1989 Chris Waddle Tottenham Hotspur Marseille £4,250,000 [29]
1991July 1991 David Platt Aston Villa Bari £5,500,000 [29]
1991August 1991 Trevor Steven Rangers Marseille £5,500,000 [35]
1992June 1992 Paul Gascoigne Tottenham Hotspur Lazio £5,500,000 [29]
1995 (1)January 1995 Andy Cole Newcastle United Manchester United £7,000,000 [36]
1995 (2)June 1995 Dennis Bergkamp Internazionale Arsenal £7,500,000 [29]
1995 (3)June 1995 Stan Collymore Nottingham Forest Liverpool £8,500,000 [37]
1996July 1996 Alan Shearer Blackburn Rovers Newcastle United £15,000,000 [38]
1999August 1999 Nicolas Anelka Arsenal Real Madrid £22,500,000 [29]
2001July 2001 Juan Sebastián Verón Lazio Manchester United £28,100,000 [39]
2002July 2002 Rio Ferdinand Leeds United Manchester United £29,100,000[a] [43]
2006July 2006 Andriy Shevchenko Milan Chelsea £30,800,000 [44]
2008September 2008 Robinho Real Madrid Manchester City £32,500,000 [45]
2009July 2009 Cristiano Ronaldo Manchester United Real Madrid £80,000,000 [4]
2013September 2013 Gareth Bale Tottenham Hotspur Real Madrid £85,300,000 [46]
July 2016 Paul Pogba Juventus Manchester United £89,000,000 [47][48][49]
2018January 2018 Philippe Coutinho Liverpool Barcelona £105,000,000 [50]
2023January 2023 Enzo Fernández Benfica Chelsea £106,800,000 [51]

Notes

  1. ^ Ferdinand's fee was also quoted as £30m,[40] with the potential to rise to £33.3m based on additional clauses.[41] Also reported as £29.3m, the total amount paid was eventually reduced by £1.75m to help Leeds avoid entering administration.[42]

See also

References

  1. ^ Simon Briggs (9 February 2009). "The day Trevor Francis broke football's £1m mark". The Daily Telegraph. London. Retrieved 5 January 2012.
  2. ^ Davies, Hunter (2003). Boots, Balls and Haircuts: An Illustrated History of Football from Then to Now. Cassell Illustrated. p. 75. ISBN 1-84403-261-2.
  3. ^ "Manchester City did not pay £47 million for Carlos Tevez, says Kia Joorabchian". London: telegraph.co.uk. 12 September 2009. Retrieved 5 January 2012.
  4. ^ a b "Ronaldo completes £80m Real move". BBC Sport. 1 July 2009. Retrieved 1 July 2009.
  5. ^ "Bale completes Real Madrid move". BBC Sport. 1 September 2013. Retrieved 1 September 2013.
  6. ^ "Groves leads the droves to Villa". The Independent. London. 24 January 1998. Archived from the original on 7 September 2009. Retrieved 12 April 2009.
  7. ^ Sunderland Daily Echo and Shipping Gazette 17 October 1903 p.5
  8. ^ Aberdeen Evening Express 14 April 1899 p.4
  9. ^ Helen Rae (18 October 2006). "Toon nostalgia on the cards for fans". Evening Chronicle. Retrieved 14 July 2008.
  10. ^ a b c d e Barnes (2007), p. 309.
  11. ^ Everton Transfers: 1907/08, EFC Statto
  12. ^ "Jock Simpson: Blackburn Rovers: Biography". Archived from the original on 24 October 2011.
  13. ^ Newcastle United - a statistical history Billy Hibbert
  14. ^ Glenn Moore; James Mariner (5 April 2008). "Their last FA Cup final ... the glorious pasts of this year's four semi-finalists". The Independent. Retrieved 5 January 2012.
  15. ^ "Tynecastle Stadium: 1892–1914". Heart of Midlothian F.C. Archived from the original on 21 March 2008. Retrieved 11 March 2008.
  16. ^ Star Green 'un 06 November 1920 p.3
  17. ^ Matthews, Tony (1995). Birmingham City: A Complete Record. Derby: Breedon Books. p. 80. ISBN 978-1-85983-010-9.
  18. ^ "Everton Minute book". www.evertoncollection.org.uk/. Retrieved 11 November 2022.
  19. ^ "England Players – David Mercer". www.englandfootballonline.com. Retrieved 25 November 2017.
  20. ^ "Andy Wilson". Chelsea Football Club. Retrieved 22 January 2018.
  21. ^ John Litster (October 2012). "A Record of pre-war Scottish League Players". Scottish Football Historian magazine. {{cite journal}}: Cite journal requires |journal= (help)
  22. ^ James, Josh; Andrews, Mark; Kelly, Andy (2018). Arsenal - The Complete Record. deCoubertin Books. p. 151. ISBN 9781909245754.
  23. ^ "Arsenal FC Board Meeting Minutes 1938-39 page 17". Arsenal F.C. 15 February 2025. Retrieved 19 February 2025.
  24. ^ "The History Of Derby County Football Club". Derby County F.C. 19 November 2011. Archived from the original on 28 December 2011. Retrieved 5 January 2012.
  25. ^ Phil Shaw (7 November 1996). "Football: Tommy Lawton dies at age of 77". The Independent. Retrieved 5 January 2012.
  26. ^ Ivan Ponting (7 November 1996). "Obituary: Tommy Lawton". The Independent. Retrieved 5 January 2012.
  27. ^ Brian Glanville (29 November 2000). "Len Shackleton". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 January 2012.
  28. ^ Louise Taylor (18 February 2011). "The five non-league teams to reach FA Cup fifth round before Crawley". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 January 2012.
  29. ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l m n o p q r s t u v Barnes (2007), p. 310.
  30. ^ Holley & Chalk 2003, pp. 494–495.
  31. ^ Jonathan Stevenson and Dan Warren (26 January 2007). "Were you there...when the Rams beat the Gas?". BBC. Retrieved 11 March 2008.
  32. ^ Stoke City 101 Golden Greats. Desert Islands Books. 2002. ISBN 1-874287-55-4.
  33. ^ James Corbett (5 March 2006). "Bob Latchford". The Observer. London. Retrieved 11 March 2008.
  34. ^ a b Albert Sewell (22 March 2002). "Ask Albert – Number 59". BBC. Retrieved 11 March 2008.
  35. ^ "Whatever happened to Trevor Steven?". Football Transfer Tavern. 23 December 2009. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  36. ^ "Cole's fresh challenge". BBC. 29 December 2001. Retrieved 11 March 2008.
  37. ^ "Collymore quits football". BBC. 7 March 2001. Retrieved 11 March 2008.
  38. ^ "Injury forces Shearer retirement". BBC. 22 April 2006. Retrieved 11 March 2008.
  39. ^ "Veron seals £28.1m Man Utd move". BBC. 12 July 2001. Retrieved 11 March 2008.
  40. ^ "Rio reaches deal". BBC Sport. 21 July 2002. Retrieved 31 August 2017.
  41. ^ "Rio seals deal". BBC Sport. 22 July 2002. Retrieved 31 August 2017.
  42. ^ "Leeds accept cut-price Rio deal". The Guardian. 28 January 2004. Retrieved 5 July 2023.
  43. ^ Stuart Roach (22 July 2003). "Duff is worlds apart". BBC. Retrieved 11 March 2008.
  44. ^ "Chelsea deny Shevchenko reports". BBC. 7 December 2006. Retrieved 11 March 2008.
  45. ^ "Man City beat Chelsea to Robinho". BBC. 5 January 2012. Retrieved 2 September 2008.
  46. ^ Jeremy, Wilson (2 September 2013). "Gareth Bale joins Real Madrid from Tottenham for a world record fee of £86m". The Telegraph. Retrieved 6 March 2015.
  47. ^ "Paul Pogba signs with Manchester United for £89 million". Al Jazeera. 9 August 2016. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
  48. ^ Lake, Jefferson (9 August 2016). "Paul Pogba joins Manchester United for world-record £89m". Sky Sports. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
  49. ^ "Paul Pogba completes Man Utd transfer for world-record fee". The Daily Telegraph. 9 August 2016. Retrieved 1 October 2018.
  50. ^ "Philippe Coutinho: Liverpool agree £143m deal with Barcelona for Brazil midfielder". BBC. 6 January 2018. Retrieved 6 January 2018.
  51. ^ "Enzo Fernandez: Chelsea sign midfielder in £106.8m British-record transfer deal from Benfica".

Bibliography

  • Barnes, Stuart (2007). News of the World Football Annual 2007/2008. Invincible Press. ISBN 978-0-00-725555-9.
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