English clubs spent $1.3 billion on foreign football transfers in 2013

ENGLISH clubs spent $1.3 billion on foreign footballers in 2013, FIFA has revealed, dwarfing Europe's elite leagues.

ENGLISH clubs spent about 660 million pounds ($1.25 billion) on overseas transfers in 2013 according to FIFA, which has released figures highlighting the English game's dependence on foreign imports.

According to the FIFA Transfer Matching System, which signs off international deals, the Premier League clubs' spending was more than Italy (286 million pounds), Spain (192 million pounds) and Germany (144 million pounds) combined.

Money spent on foreign players by English clubs made up almost 25 per cent of the total value of the global market.

When it comes to net spend, England is even more reliant on its wealth from broadcasting income compared with its main European competitors.

Clubs in England spent 370 million pounds more than they brought in, with no other country even close to that figure.

Turkish clubs had the second-biggest net deficit, at 80 million pounds, but England were far "ahead" despite the sale of Gareth Bale from Tottenham Hotspur to Real Madrid which, in itself, brought 85 million pounds into the Premier League.

Compare that trading deficit with Spain, where clubs recouped money despite vast outlays on Bale and Neymar.

Spanish clubs led the global net earners in 2013, collectively receiving around 150 million pounds more than they spent.

With Brazilian players the most extensively traded, clubs in Brazil earned 145 million pounds and Portuguese clubs recorded 130 million pounds net.

The figures cover 12,309 international transfers that went through the FIFA clearing house.

They may not tell us anything we did not already know about English financial strength arising largely from the Premier League's huge broadcasting income but as Greg Dyke, the FA chairman, leads his commission into declining numbers of English players, they will raise familiar questions about whether imports are blocking the way for home talent.

The Premier League is pumping 340 million pounds into its new academy system over three years, but the amount spent on imports will raise fresh questions about whether enough is being devoted to development when so much money is heading abroad.

The international character of English football is one of the reasons for its success, given that about 40 per cent of the 5.5 billion pounds in broadcasting rights comes from overseas. However, the dependence on imports makes challenging reading, especially with the revelation that of the 130 million pounds that went to agents and intermediaries in the deals registered by Fifa, almost 50 million pounds was spent by English clubs (on top of the millions paid to agents in domestic deals last year).

The Times