Good morning. World Cup players drive more than $3.3bn in summer transfer fees, a former Premier League referee says he used to play secret games during matches, and everything else you need to know.
KEY FIXTURES
Premier League MD3: Ipswich Town vs Liverpool, Fri 4, 20:00 BST / 15:00 ET. Liverpool are unbeaten in their last 20 Premier League matches against newly promoted sides. However, Ipswich’s home record has been excellent, having gone unbeaten in their last 18 home league games. Bradley Barcola could make his Liverpool debut. Manchester City vs Coventry City, Sat 5, 15:00 BST / 10:00 ET. Man City could win their opening three matches of a Premier League campaign for the third time in four attempts, and they boast a 30-game unbeaten streak against newly promoted sides. Arsenal vs Chelsea, Sun 6, 16:30 BST / 11:30 ET. Arsenal are unbeaten in their last nine Premier League games against Chelsea, and the Blues have lost their last four league games at the Emirates by an aggregate score of 11-2. Plus, Arsenal have lost just one of their last 29 league London derbies. See every Premier League fixture here and the table here.
TOP TALKING POINTS
World Cup Transfer Fees
Players who featured at the 2026 World Cup generated more than $3.3bn in international transfer fees during the summer transfer window. More than 260 World Cup players from 47 nationalities changed clubs, with fees involving World Cup players accounting for over a third of the record $9.89bn spent internationally in the men’s game. Read the full transfer report here.
More than 12,500 international transfers were registered worldwide, another record for a mid-year window. English clubs dominated the market, spending more than $3.02bn and recording the highest number of both incoming (512) and outgoing (596) international transfers. Italian clubs were the next biggest spenders at $1.1bn, followed by Spanish clubs at $940m.
Women’s football also set new records. International transfer spending more than doubled compared with the 2025 mid-year window to $28.6m, while 1,406 international transfers were completed in the professional women’s game — 19.2% above the previous record. English clubs again led spending, accounting for $8m of women’s international transfer fees.
Referee’s Secret Games
Former Premier League referee Mike Dean claimed that he used to play secret games during matches “as a laugh”. Speaking on Jamie Vardy’s podcast, Dean, who had a 28-year career as a professional referee, said that he would see how long he could go without blowing the whistle or leaving the centre circle during matches. Watch the clip here.
Pro Ref, the professional referee body, has reportedly reviewed the claims, and insiders told The Times there is no evidence such practices actually happened. Other senior refereeing figures have also cast doubt on whether Dean’s claims are true.
Dean’s comments drew criticism on social media, though charity Ref Support UK defended him. On social media, it wrote: “Fans are so fickle. I have seen and heard about players doing similar like kicking the ball out from [kick-off], intentionally getting booked or sent off etc, etc, but that’s just a laugh isn’t it?”
Dive deeper into every Premier League red card issued by Mike Dean here.
Spain Backs Players
The Spanish football federation is preparing to pay for its female international players to freeze their eggs so they can fit motherhood around their careers. Alexia Putellas, one of the greatest female football players of all time, said she had raised the issue with her federation and welcomes the initiatives as a “huge step forward.”
“The federation understands that you are serving your country against your biological clock, that you cannot stop and cannot be a mother because you need your body to work,” Putellas told El Pais. The initiative, however, has also drawn criticism. Spanish Olympic triple-jumper Ana Peleteiro said women shouldn’t be encouraged to postpone having children, but instead need better protections during pregnancy.
A 2017 FIFPro survey found that only 2% of respondents had children, while 47% said they would leave football early to start a family. Among players who were mothers, 61% received no childcare support and only 8% received maternity pay from their club or federation. Since then, protections have improved. Fifa’s minimum 14 weeks of paid maternity leave for players took effect in 2021, while in 2024 it expanded protections to include coaches, adoption and family leave.
ON THE BALL
Europe
• Actor Hugh Jackman is in talks to buy a stake in Championship club Norwich City (More) | The Labour government in the UK has called on the London Mayor to explore selling the London Stadium to West Ham United (More) | Daniel Kretinsky has agreed a deal to take a 46% stake in West Ham, making him the club's largest shareholder and effectively ending Amanda Staveley's bid to buy in (More)
• The Women’s Super League returns with London City Lionesses vs Manchester United on Friday (Sept 4) as the opening fixture; see all fixtures (More) and full preview (More) | London City Lionesses owner Michele Kang says her club's new shirt sponsorship deal with sports brand Nike is the largest in the women's game (More)
• Private equity funds are preparing to bid for a minority stake in a company holding Serie A’s international media rights (More); see upcoming Serie A fixtures (More)
• Real Madrid defender Raul Asencio was cleared of charges related to sharing a video of sexual content without the victims’ consent (More)
Americas
• The Colorado Rapids and St. Louis City set a record for the largest cash-for-player trade in MLS history when Colorado sent forward Rafael Navarro to St. Louis for $12m (More) | New York City and Nashville kick off the MLS weekend fixtures on Friday (Sept 4); see all fixtures (More)
• The Leagues Cup 2026 Final will feature Toluca FC versus C.F. Monterrey at Shell Energy Stadium in Houston on Sunday (Sept 6) (More)
• NWSL leaders Gotham FC will travel to Denver Summit on Sunday (Sept 6); see upcoming NWSL fixtures (More) and Standings (More)
• All matches in Argentina this week will be paused in the 10th minute for a minute-long tribute to Lionel Messi’s international retirement (More)
• Loudoun United vs Colorado Springs Switchbacks will kick off week 27 of the USL Championship on Friday (Sept 4); see upcoming fixtures (More) and Standings (More)
Rest of the World
• Al Hilal and Al Nassr remain unbeaten going into Matchday 5 of the Saudi Pro League; see upcoming fixtures (More) | Al Hilal have signed winger Gabriel Martinelli from Arsenal for £60m (More)
• Ghana have re-hired Carlos Queiroz as their head coach less than two months after quitting the role following their Round of 32 exit at the World Cup (More)
ROUTERS’ VOICE
Yesterday’s Poll: Do you believe homegrown talent should stay loyal to the club that developed them?
🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 🟩 👍 Yes (54%)
🟨 🟨 🟨 🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ 🙅♂️ Nope (42%)
🟨 ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ⬜️ ✍️ Other (4%)
Your punditry takes:
👍 J.W.F: “In an ideal world, it would work that way. But face it, football is big business, and clubs often look after their bottom lines more than supporting their academy players. And on the other side of the equation, loyalty should not rule out a player's chance to advance their career. Not just monetarily, but also perhaps the difference between riding the bench and being in the starting 11 on another team.”
🙅♂️ P.G: “Absolutely not. While teams, players, and fans grow to love one another over time, at its heart the sport is a ruthless business. Teams rarely show loyalty to any players outside legends (with plenty of examples of even legends being shown the door), so no player owes a team anything.”
✍️ J.M: “Loyalty is two-way. If the club gives the player a good deal and regular play-time then I would generally expect the player to stay at the club. If they never play or they are offered far more elsewhere though, then a player is completely right to want to move.”
EXTRA TIME
Seven charts explaining the summer market.
Inside Man City’s transfer arrivals and departures. (video)
How do European squad lists work?
Club displays tifo with working rollercoaster.
Ranking the most game-changing transfers in Premier League history.
Denver Summit player nutmegs 4 of her teammates at the same time.
Harry Kane: What everyone gets wrong about strikers.
GAME FACE ON
Question: Which player wore Argentina’s No. 10 shirt before Lionel Messi?
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.
Talking about Messi is complicated; there's not much that can be said about him, and there are no words that can describe his quality.
Answer
Juan Roman Riquelme.