When it comes to transfer activity, Brazil - not the Premier League or China - reigns supreme
A total of 1,484 players moved to or from Brazil last year - a figure that eclipses the more traditionally spendthrift leagues in Europe and the Far East
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Brazil sees more international football transfer activity than any country in the world, a new Fifa report has shown.
In 2016, a total of 806 players left Brazilian clubs for overseas while 678 arrived - eclipsing the figures for the more traditionally spendthrift leagues in Europe and the Far East.
But while Fifa's Global Transfer Market Report 2017 shows Brazil has the busiest league system in the world when it comes to football transfers, it falls far behind competitors in terms of spending.
Top of that list is England - spearheaded by the Premier League - which spent $1.37bn (£1.08bn) on 659 international transfers in 2016 alone. Brazil spent just $85m on its 678 arrivals.
Following England is Germany ($576m), Spain ($508m), Italy ($508m) and deposing France ($207m) in fifth place is China which spent $451m.
Spending in China skyrocketed last year, boosted by the riches of the Chinese Super League, with outgoings increasing 168.2 per cent on 2015 when the country was ranked down in 20th place in terms of international transfers.
Fifa's report details every transfer that took place between clubs from two different associations, using data from its International Transfer Matching System (ITMS).
In total there were 14,591 deals worth $4.79bn last year with the governing body estimating that agents made $369m off those deals alone. Good money if you can get it.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments