The transfer window is one of the most important things for any football team to master.

With just two opportunities to reshape a team every year, the transfer window allows teams to buy and sell players and it can often determine the success of a team on the pitch. 

In the past few transfer windows, we have seen record spending transfer fees and the end of the transfer window has become an event in itself.

Kate Richardson is an expert when it comes to covering football transfers and she has been on hand to let us know seven of the most iconic transfers that have happened in football history. 

1. Neymar moves to PSG from Barcelona in world’s most expensive transfer

After being taken over by Qatar back in 2011, PSG have risen to become one of the richest clubs in the world. The dream for their new Qatari owners was to take the club to a new level where they would become European giants.

With an almost unlimited budget, the new owners have gone about completely revitalising the team and in 2017 they shocked the football world when they announced the signing of Neymar from Barcelona. 

Billed as the missing piece to hopefully land PSG the Champions League, the deal to sign Neymar cost a stunning €222 million and saw it become the most expensive signing in football history.

Upon signing Neymar proclaimed “I am very, very happy,” he said. I cannot describe what I am feeling in my heart right now. I am here to help the team to win as many titles as possible. I have come to take on a new challenge and to win titles.”

Despite pairing Neymar alongside Lionel Messi and Kylian Mbappe, the dream signing of Neymar would quickly turn into a nightmare as PSG would fall short of winning the ultimate prize. 

With injuries constantly disrupting his career,  in the summer of 2023 Neymar left Paris and moved to Saudi Arabian side Al-Hilal. Neymar’s summer move was one the most high profile Saudi Arabia football transfers and despite not being the superstar he once was, he still commands one of the largest salaries in the game.

2. PSG sign Kylian Mbappe in move that rocks European football

PSG transfers fill out the top two spots in our list. With Neymar already acquired, PSG wanted to make another mark in the transfer market and wanted to acquire the services of one of the best young soccer players in the world, Kylian Mbappe. 

A standout for Monaco, the two teams tussled over heavy and intense negotiations before a price was finally agreed.

One of the most expensive signings in history, the move for Mbappe initially was a loan before the Parisian club would then make the deal permanent. 

Set to be worth €180 million, Mbappe’s move made him one of the world’s most wealthy players with PSG reportedly paying the young french starlet over €1 million in wages every week.

3. Cristiano Ronaldo moves to Real Madrid to highlight pulling power of Spain’s top side

No player in world football has gone on to attract as many record fees as Cristiano Ronaldo. Bought by Manchester United from Sporting Lisbon when Ronaldo was just a teenager, Ronaldo helped Manchester United win an abundance of titles including the 2008 Champions League.

However, despite the enormity of Manchester United, Real Madrid saw Ronaldo as the man to reignite the club’s ambition to return to the top of the football pyramid. Deals between the world’s biggest football clubs are never easy, but after much haggling by Ronaldo’s agents, a deal was struck and in the summer of 2019 Ronaldo switched Old Trafford for the Bernabeu.

Upon moving to Madrid, Ronaldo exclaimed “I am just so happy to be here,” he said. “For me, I have made my childhood dream a reality, which was nothing less than playing for Real Madrid.”

Fact: At the time of his move, the £80 million that Real paid for his signature made it the most expensive football transfer in history. Whilst with Real, Ronaldo won four Champions League titles and the move will forever live in the folklore of Real Madrid transfers.

4. Figo moves to Real Madrid which descends Barcelona into chaos

The transfer of Luis Figo to Real Madrid from arch rivals Barcelona is still one of the most controversial signings of all time.

Signed for a world record expensive fee, Figo’s move sent shockwaves through world football. 

Having spent five seasons at Barcelona, in 2000 Figo was crowned the top footballer in the world when winning the Ballon d’Or. Wanting to be paid to reflect his position as the game’s best player, reports began to emerge that Barcelona couldn’t agree on various details of his contract and they couldn’t make Figo one of the game’s most lucrative players.

With Barcelona needing to make further investments, Real Madrid President Florentino Perez sensed an opportunity and reached out to Figo and his camp. Offering him one of the biggest contracts in football history, Figo and his team accepted and in the summer 2000 transfer window he was announced as a Real player.

https://youtu.be/fudHmt4qi3E?si=-wyw2iPebOzaD8gG

The move caused uproar in Barcelona with Figo becoming public enemy number one. To this day, the transfer is still one of the most shocking in history.

5. Sol Campbell moves from Tottenham to Arsenal

Anybody that follows the Premier League knows that there is no love lost between Tottenham and Arsenal. The two clubs share an intense rivalry and that rivalry reached fever pitch when Arsenal signed Tottenham captain Sol Campbell for a free transfer.

Fact: What made the transfer so controversial was that Campbell was a product of the Tottenham youth academy and quickly rose in stature to become the captain of the club. 

Despite Tottenham struggling, Campbell publicly announced that he would sign a new contract at the end of the 2021 season with his boyhood club.

When the end of the season approached, Campbell’s future was still unknown. On the morning of 3rd July, Campbell shocked the world when he announced that he had joined bitter rivals Arsenal on a free transfer.

The move caused dismay to Tottenham fans who to this day have no love for their former captain. Not only did Campbell join the team’s biggest rivals, but he denied Tottenham money and greatly skewed their budgets. Campbell would go on to win the Premier League title with Arsenal, but his move is still one of the most controversial in Premier League history.

6. Alan Shearer moves to Newcastle for world record fee

Alan Shearer is the Premier League’s all-time goal scorer and in July 1996, Shearer left Blackburn and joined his hometown club Newcastle. Signed for a world record fee of £15 million, Shearer’s move reshaped the transfer market and showed the rest of the Premier League that Newcastle were a new player in town.

Despite the attention of Manchester United, Shearer would never win a major trophy at Newcastle but he did become the club’s all time scorer. Although it has since been eclipsed as one of the most expensive Premier League transfers, his move still remains one of the most iconic.

7. Enzo Fernandez spearheads Chelsea transfer splurge

After Roman Abramovich decided to part ways with Chelsea, new owners Clearlake decided to revamp the Chelsea team. Getting rid of several older players, Chelsea went on a journey of stockpiling their team with some of the most talented young players in the world.

One man that Chelsea wanted to get their hands on was young Argentinian starlet Enzo Fernandez. Fernandez was a part of Argentina’s successful 2022 World Cup campaign but in order to get him out of Benfica, Chelsea would need to meet his hefty release clause.

Despite being relatively unproven at the top level of the game, Chelsea were keen to make Fernandez the face of their new team and duly met the figure that Benfica demanded.

Since taking over at Chelsea, Clearlake have spent over £1 billion in transfer fees. Many have criticised their scattergun approach with many believing they have unrealistically reset the value of several players. It remains to be seen how much they will continue to spend this summer.

How transfers can impact predictions

These days betting on football transfers has become big business. Football transfers are hugely debated and fans of all of the biggest clubs in the world expect their team to spend millions in bringing in some of the game’s best players.

As football is the most bet on sport in the world, football bets can be placed on almost every day of the year. Guided by experts on the best football predictions today, sites like Mightytips provide daily predictions and are essential websites for any football fan to follow. 

Prediction experts will use the impact of the transfer window to make their predictions. A successful transfer window can help turn a team’s fortunes around almost instantly. A successful transfer window can help teams win titles, cups, avoid relegation or just win big matches. 

However, those wanting to place bets or study predictions for next season may have a tough time on their hands. The upcoming summer transfer window will likely see hundreds of millions spent and the football landscape is likely to shift once again. 

With the Premier League set to be as competitive as ever and with the Saudi Pro League likely to spend millions in trying to attract the best players. It’s likely that world record fees will be spent as teams try to rule supreme at the top of the game. 

No player has ever been bought for over €250 million, but that is very likely to change soon.