Premier League Clubs Spend £70m On Agent Fees
Premier League clubs spent more than £70m on agents’ fees between October 2008 and September 2009, according to the first-ever such figures released by the English top-flight.
Manchester City, bankrolled by new owner Sheikh Mansour, were the biggest spenders – shelling out almost £13m.
The club spent nearly £150m in the transfer market in the same period, including £25m on Emmanuel Adebayor and £22.5m on Joleon Lescott.
As well as Adebayor and Lescott, City signed goalkeeper Shay Given, defenders Wayne Bridge and Kolo Toure, strikers Craig Bellamy, Carlos Tevez and Roque Santa Cruz as well as midfielders Gareth Barry and Nigel de Jong.
Chelsea were second having spent £9.5m while Burnley were the lowest spenders.
Current champions Manchester United were near the bottom of the list at just £1.5m, having been relatively quiet in the transfer market.
Last summer, United spent a reported £16m on Wigan’s Antonio Valencia and £3m on French winger Gabriel Obertan.
In response to the figures, Manchester City chief financial officer Graham Wallace commented: ‘As has previously been stated by our chief executive Garry Cook, the level of player acquisition over the past year has been unprecedented as we have sought to rebuild our playing squad.
‘Squad building at this level and within such a short time frame is unlikely to be repeated.
‘The figure in question relates to payments made for 35 players, many of whom predate this time period.
‘The fees represent an average of £360,000 per transaction, and the total amount falls well within our annual budget and operating plan as approved by our board.’
It is the first time the figures from top-flight clubs have been published after the elite 20 followed the example set by the Football League, who began to publish annual spending reports five years ago.
Under new regulations, clubs agree to the publication of the figures after 30 November each year.
A Football Association spokesperson said: ‘We are pleased that, through these new requirements, clubs are bringing greater transparency to the domestic transfer market.
‘For the first time, there will be a game-wide picture of the level of spending on agents. The leagues and other key stakeholders have been fully supportive, following the example set by the Football League with its publication of agents fees over the last few years.’
Total money spent on agents (from Oct 08 – Sep 09):
Manchester City – £12,874,283
Chelsea – £9,562,223
Liverpool – £6,657,305
Tottenham – £6,066,935
Wigan – £5,527,548
Arsenal – £4,760,241
West Ham – £3,576,972
Portsmouth – £3,184,725
Bolton – £3,166,611
Everton – £2,008,407
Sunderland – £2,007,040
Aston Villa – £1,708,374
Blackburn – £1,610,885
Hull – £1,599,188
Manchester United – £1,517,393
Fulham – £1,469,258
Wolves – £1,235,703
Birmingham – £974,982
Stoke – £716,042
Burnley – £468,398
