Good morning. Premier League clubs have yet again broken the transfer window spending record, the Ballon d’Or shortlist is set to be announced, and everything else you need to know.
TOP TALKING POINTS
EPL Breaks Transfer Record
Premier League clubs have collectively broken the all-time summer transfer record, having spent £3.198bn. The previous record of £3.14bn was set just 12 months ago, while clubs have now spent almost three times the £1.13bn they did five years ago. That figure is set to rise further, with Manchester City agreeing a joint-British transfer record £125m fee for Chelsea midfielder Enzo Fernandez (see On the Ball).
Four of the 11 most expensive signings in football history have happened this summer, with three of them involving Premier League clubs. Chelsea signed Morgan Rogers for £117m, Manchester City paid £116m for Elliot Anderson, and Liverpool spent an initial £106m on Bradley Barcola. The only non-Premier League deal among the four was Yan Diomande’s move to Real Madrid.
One trend this window is that Premier League clubs are also increasingly buying from each other. Some 38% of deals involving a fee this summer have been between two Premier League sides, up from 30% last year, rising to 48% when transfers from the rest of the English football pyramid are included. Tottenham alone have signed Sandro Tonali from Newcastle for a fee that could reach £100m, Mateus Fernandes from West Ham for £85m, and Savio from Manchester City for an initial £75m.
Kushner Lawyers Up
The lead investor in Fifa’s failed plans to sell a stake in the World Cup, Joshua Kushner, has hired Elon Musk’s lawyer to represent him in Uefa’s legal action over the deal. The lawyer, Alex Spiro (video), works for New York law firm Quinn Emanuel, which has been acting for Fifa since the 2015 corruption scandal.
Kushner, who founded Thrive Capital, said on Monday that he regretted Thrive’s involvement in the proposal to buy a stake in Fifa Forward Enterprise (FFE). “Had we known what this would devolve into, we would not have gotten involved,” he said. And while he admits to failing to “appreciate the political dynamics of global football,” he stands “behind the motivations of FFE.”
Last week, Uefa asked a US federal court for permission to obtain documents and testimony for a planned criminal complaint in Switzerland against Fifa president Gianni Infantino and potentially other Fifa officials and advisers involved in the deal. Spiro, Kushner’s lawyer, has successfully represented Musk and Jay-Z in commercial and civil disputes, and famously had Alec Baldwin’s involuntary manslaughter charges dismissed.
Ballon d’Or Shortlist
The Ballon d’Or has confirmed it will announce its shortlists for 2026 on September 8. The shortlists will be announced for 12 different categories, with 30 men’s and 30 women’s players to be nominated. Dive deeper into how the Ballon d’Or winners are decided here.
For the men’s trophy, Bayern Munich’s Harry Kane is currently the favourite across betting odds and popular prediction markets. In 2025-26, the Englishman scored 73 goals and assisted eight, and won the German domestic treble with the Bundesliga, DFB-Pokal and DFL Supercup. Lamine Yamal, Kylian Mbappe, Rodri, and Lionel Messi consistently make up the rest of the top five favourites.
For the women’s, Alexia Putellas is widely considered the favourite to end Aitana Bonmati’s streak of three consecutive Ballon d’Or wins. Putellas, who is now at WSL club London City Lionesses, scored 22 goals and assisted 12 in the 2025-26 season. She also won the Women’s Nations League, Liga F, Supercopa de Espana, Copa de la Reina, and the Champions League.
London will host the 2026 ceremony on 26 October, breaking with tradition to mark the award’s 70th anniversary. The move from the Théâtre du Châtelet in Paris, home to the ceremony since 2019, to the English capital honours the first player to ever receive the award, England’s Sir Stanley Matthews.
ON THE BALL
Europe
• Manchester City have agreed to a joint-British transfer record fee of £125m for Chelsea’s Enzo Fernandez (More) | Paris Saint-Germain have sold more than $460m in players during the summer transfer window following the sale of Ibrahim Mbaye to Aston Villa for €55m (More)
• Swansea City climb to the top of the Championship table following a 2-0 win over Watford (More); see all Championship results (More) and Wednesday’s fixtures (More)
• The BBC says it’s “fully committed to women’s football” despite discontinuing its flagship highlights show for the WSL (More) | The Women’s Champions League third qualifying round continues on Wednesday (Sept 2); see the upcoming fixtures (More)
• Lamine Yamal has become the youngest player in the history of Europe's top five leagues to reach 50 goals, surpassing Erling Haaland and Kylian Mbappe (More) | Barcelona have completed the signing of Gabriel Jesus from Arsenal for £8.6m (More)
• Scotland and Napoli midfielder Scott McTominay is set to have a minor heart procedure for “mild benign arrhythmia”, an irregular heartbeat (More)
• UEFA has launched new guidance to measure the environmental impact of supporters travelling to and from matches (More)
Americas
• The all-Liga MX Leagues Cup semi-finals take place on Wednesday (Sept 2) with Toluca vs Leon and Club America vs Monterrey (More) | Dani Alves will have to pay Liga MX’s Pumas UNAM $2.25m in compensation after a Swiss court ratified the ruling made by the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS) (More)
• The MLS will reportedly return all 27 US-based teams to the revamped US Open Cup (More)
• Angel City ended their six-game winless run with a 5-2 win over Boston Legacy (More); see the NWSL table (More)
• The Canadian Championship semi-final between FC Supra du Quebec and Forge FC will conclude shortly after publication (Live Result); Vancouver vs Montreal takes place on Wednesday (Sept 2)
Rest of the World
ROUTERS’ VOICE
Yesterday’s Poll: Are you happy with your club’s transfer window business?
🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 👍 Yes (55%)
🟨 🟨 🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ 🙅♂️ Nope (42%)
🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other (3%)
Your punditry takes:
👍 C.B: “I thought Brentford did some really smart business by addressing depth (Wilson, Anthony), adding young win-now pieces (Diouf, Sangare) and an intriguing development piece (Schuster). And that they did so without breaking the bank should surprise NO ONE! Smart team, great vision!”
🙅♂️ L.H: “As a Crystal Palace fan, it has been an exceptionally frustrating transfer window. Lacroix has followed Guehi out the door without a suitable CB replacement. Munoz, the best RWB in the Premier League, has been sold to a potential relegation rival. Saar and Mateta both want to go. And, with one day left of the window, we have not signed anyone who is a guaranteed starter. Throw in the added demands of the Europa League, and we are surely facing a very difficult season.”
✍️ N.H: “I am an Aston Villa fan, so only time will tell. Feels hard losing the core of the team that won our first trophy in 30 years, but at the same time Manzambi, Mbaye and Suzuki are exciting young prospects.”
EXTRA TIME
Every transfer in Europe’s top five leagues.
The best throw-in assist all year.
BBC’s Premier League team of the week.
What happened to German football after WWII?
The most valuable clubs outside Europe’s top leagues.
Jose Mourinho’s strict new rules at Real Madrid.
GAME FACE ON
Who Am I…
I have played in Europe and America.
I won the Best Fifa Men’s Player Award in 2020 and 2021.
I have scored 109 goals in the Uefa Champions League.
Scroll below for the answer.
Daily Wordle: Guess the football-related word, from player names to classic phrases, in six tries or fewer. Play it here.
I might have said that, but on the whole, I talk a lot of rubbish.
Answer
Robert Lewandowski.