Who spends the most in Europe? Barcelona spent the most on transfers, City is the biggest loser, Real Madrid surprisingly low

Transfers, guest appearances, speculation and endless haggling. The transfer window is slowly opening and with it the whole merry-go-round that inherently goes with this period. Who has spent the most money on transfers in the last 5 years?

Only the amounts for transfers over the last 5 seasons are taken into account, so it is not the overall financial situation of the club. However, the list of the ten biggest spending clubs may surprise you.

Barcelona have spent the most in the last five years. It paid 1.05 billion euros for 88 players. In the same period, it sold 82 players for €701 million, bringing the total balance to a loss of €350 million. It is the mismanagement of the Catalan big club that has led Barcelona to huge debts that are worrying Culés fans.

In second place is Juventus, which spent 944 million euros on players. However, for this amount it brought in 240 players, which is almost three times more than what Barcelona got. On the other hand, 235 players have left the Old Lady since the 2016/17 season, for which Juventus cashed in €744 million. The total balance is thus a negative 199 million euros.

The third biggest spenders are Manchester City. In the period under review, it bought 139 players for a total of €939 million. However, players do not leave the Etihad Stadium for too much money, so the Citizens sold 126 players for “only” 316 million euros. That brings the total balance to a staggering €622 million loss. But Manchester City’s owners need not worry, because their options are almost inexhaustible.

For some, the position of Real Madrid may come as a surprise. The Spanish giant is the tenth biggest spender, although it is considered by the public to be the most profligate. In recent years, however, apart from Hazard, the management has relied on younger and cheaper players rather than big stars. The golden generation that ruled Europe for 3 straight years helped, so there was no need for big signings.

In the last five years, Real spent €588 million, almost half of what its arch rival spent. For that amount, 85 players have come to the Bernabéu. Los Blancos, however, have managed to sell 77 players for 547 million euros, bringing their balance sheet to just -41 million euros. This is the best result of the top 10 teams.

People often talk about Real Madrid’s big debts, but that’s not entirely true. The White Ballet took out a €600 million loan for the new stadium, which will be repaid in instalments over the next 35 years. The debt is therefore certainly not the cause of the club’s poor performance.

The fourth biggest spender is Chelsea. Owner Roman Abramovich has pumped €894 million into transfers, bringing in 156 players. London, on the other hand, has seen 141 players leave for 602 million euros, making a loss on transfers of 291 million euros.

Top 10 biggest spenders:

1. Barcelona – (Spent) €1.05bn – (Profit) €701m – (Balance) €350m
2. Juventus – (Spent) €944m – (Profit) €744m – (Balance) -199m
3. Man. City – (Spent) 939m€ – (Profit) 316m€ – (Balance) -622m€
4. Chelsea – (Spent) 894m€ – (Profit) 602m€ – (Balance) -291m€
5. Man. United – (Spent) €776m – (Profit) €223m – (Balance) -€553m
6. PSG – (Spent) €757m – (Profit) €383m – (Balance) €373m
7. Inter Milan (Spent) 691m€ – (Profit) 333m€ – (Balance) -358m€
8. Atlético Madrid (Utraceno) €676m – (Profit) €595m – (Balance) -€80m
9. Arsenal – (Spent) 591m€ – (Profit) 248m€ – (Balance) -342m€
10. Real Madrid – (Spent) 588m€ – (Profit) 547m€ – (Balance) -41m€

Source: Transfermarkt