What goes on behind the scenes of a football transfer?
Football is a worldwide past time that is enjoyed by millions of people everywhere. It, like many other sports, brings people together and promotes friendly competition. However, there is a lot that goes in in football (and other sports) that many people do not pay much attention to. Transfers in football are increasingly common and highly beneficial for club owners and players alike. Some of the biggest football transfers of all time have made insane differences in team rankings and performance. But, what really goes on behind the scenes of the big football transfers?
The idea seems pretty straightforward: a club targets a player and they finalize the deal. This sounds easy to most of us. In practice, however, from identifying the talent to signing the deal, the process can actually be quite complex. In the eighties and nineties, it was fairly common for plays to discuss, negotiate, and sign long-term contracts with their new manager (without the assistance from agents, executives, directors, or chairmen). Today, the opposite is true. It is unusual for a player in the top four divisions to be without an agent.
The fact is, the process is complicated. For any high-profile, multi million pound transfer, it is typical that two areas of agreement need to be reached between the clubs and the player. Though this may sound fairly straightforward, in practice it is usually anything but. Discussing and agreeing on multi-millions in transfer fees is only a part of the larger challenge. Working with various agents is a must in order to agree on a weekly wage and sign-on fee, as well as loyalty and performance bonuses. There is a lot in the small details of this process. More than anything, transfers are a game of interlinked negotiation. One transfer can set off an entire chain reaction. The process can involve multiple players and clubs fighting with one another for the best deal, and it can go on right up until the last minute of the time window. The process can include months of phone calls, facetimes, and messages over the entirety. Depending on whether the club chooses to buy, negotiates a deal, or pulls out of a transfer, there will be direct or indirect consequences for other transfer that are somehow linked. A good agent will be aware of these situations at multiple clubs and leagues worldwide. More than anything, it is a game of strategy (like chess), and there is a lot of forward thinking involved.
Transfer fees are usually paid in installments. When a club wants to invest huge amounts of money into a superstar player, they need to think about the total investment they will be taking on. When headlines quote a transfer fee of £35m, many people would assume that a buying club transfers that money to the selling club on the day of the transfer and everything is done. When in reality, the reported total headline transfer fee is, more often than not, different from the actual amount that was paid. This process is actually broken down in a much more complicated way behind the scenes. GQ magazine suggests a breakdown of the process:
“Let’s suggest that Liverpool pay £35m for a Brazilian international player. The transfer agreement may state that Liverpool pay:
• £15m up front.
• £5m on both the first and second anniversaries of the player’s transfer.
• £5m if the player makes 50 appearances for Liverpool.
• £5m if the player wins the Champions League and the Premier League with Liverpool (£2.5m per win).
If the player doesn’t make 50 appearances for Liverpool and the club doesn’t win the Champions League or Premier League, then the club will only ever pay £25m to the selling club out of a headline reported figure of £35m.”
What is really important to understand is the fact that wages are a big investment in football transfers. The transfer fee is only one small element of the much larger package; and this is where things tend to get a bit pricey. A player’s salary over the length of a single contract will usually be a huge investment for the club that is buying. The average salary of a Premier League player is around 2.6m per year (which is just over 50k a week). When you go even further to look at international elite Premier League players, a club could be earning much more per year. This means that over time, during a long contracted deal, a player’s wages will rise over the lifetime of the contract. Though fans may not be able to recognize this, a transfer of that size is a lot for a club. It requires the owners to have deep pockets, let’s just say that. This means that the directors of the club, the technical team, scouts, and managers need to have a very clear idea of what the team’s budget will be and stick to it. The big picture is that this process is complicated and difficult for those outside of the elite football world to grasp.
Installment schedules are also really important. Many clubs rely on transfer sales to help them pay for expenditures, and often prefer to accept a smaller fee paid immediately in full over a larger fee that can take a few years to fully pay off. If a club purchases a player at a high fee, it can be hard for them to make other ends meet throughout the process. A lot of the time, clubs will offer slightly lower prices and pay them at once to avoid the pitfalls of the longer version of the process. There are times that the larger fee can take two to three years from the date of sale to be fully realized. If the buying club experiences any financial trouble, this can also become problematic as financial issues lead to defaulted payments and other issues in terms of money. Basically, having a set schedule and goal in mind when making these transfers is incredibly important to the clubs to remain profitable.
The process of a football transfer is very complicated, and a lot goes on behind the scenes that we don’t necessarily see or understand. There are a lot of negotiations and back-and-forths that go on between everyone involved. Transfers happen all the time and can be great for the industry overall when handled correctly.