Overview
- Premier League clubs drove summer transfer spending to a record roughly £3.46 billion, with about £475 million spent on Deadline Day alone.
- Manchester City completed the high‑fee signing of Enzo Fernández from Chelsea for around €140–145 million (£125 million), a marquee deal announced at the close of the window.
- The Bundesliga spent roughly €782 million this summer, with Bayer Leverkusen, Borussia Dortmund and Bayern Munich the biggest buyers, and German clubs finished the window with a small net surplus while English clubs showed a transfer deficit of over £1 billion.
- Teams used short‑term roster fixes and legal workarounds after the window closed, including Borussia Dortmund's loan of Ethan Nwaneri as cover for the long‑term absence of Giannis Konstantelias and Mainz 05's pre‑deadline contract dissolution with Marco Richter to allow a post‑window move.
- A number of high‑profile players remained free agents after the deadline — notably former Dortmund players such as Jadon Sancho and Raphaël Guerreiro — highlighting a split between club demand and player valuation that will shape midseason markets and careers.