For the first time, the report also includes the transfers of amateur footballers worldwide. Thanks to changes to the FIFA Regulations on the Status and Transfer of Players (RSTP) and enhancements to the Transfer Matching System (TMS), since July 2020 FIFA has also been able to process and facilitate transfers of amateurs in TMS. During the first six months of implementation, some 17,382 amateur players switched clubs.
Football player transfers represent not only the largest movement of sports people but also the largest of all sectors of economic or social activity. A total of 35,744 transfers across borders were recorded in 2020: 18,112 involving professionals (men and women) plus another 17,632 involving amateurs.
SLIGHT DECREASE IN PROFESSIONAL MEN’S INTERNATIONAL TRANSFERS
In the men’s professional game, a total of 17,077 international transfers were completed, representing a decrease of 5.4 per cent compared to 2019 and the first decline since 2010, although the number of transfers in 2020 were still higher than they were in 2018. The downward trend is clearly due to the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic.
Those 17,077 transfers involved a record high of 4,178 clubs and 187 member associations, with 14,432 distinct players representing 180 different nationalities.
WOMEN’S FOOTBALL CONTINUES TO GROW
Women’s football continued to go from strength to strength in 2020, with the number of clubs involved in international transfers rising from 276 (in 2019) to 349, representing a 26.4 per cent increase. This reflects the impressive strides being made as more and more female football players are turning professional every year. A total of 1,035 international transfers were recorded in 2020, an increase of 23.7 per cent compared to the previous year.
INTERNATIONAL TRANSFERS OF AMATEURS RECORDED FOR FIRST TIME
Transfers in the vast world of global amateur football were also recorded in TMS for the first time in 2020, and the results were impressive: 10,465 clubs from 196 member associations were involved in the transfers of 17,382 amateur players (men and women) in 17,632 transfers (246 players moved more than once in those six months).
For each of the above categories, the Global Transfer Market Report 2020 includes analysis on the players’ nationalities, ages, and movement between confederations and associations. For professional players, the report also provides further analysis in respect of employment contracts while also presenting the top performers at confederation, association and club levels. The report also features a complete list of the number of transfers in each member association for each of the respective categories.
