The top 20 biggest transfers of the summer 2026 window…

Ian Watson 24 Jun 2026 2:06 PM

Jeremy Jacquet, Anthony Gordon and Rasmus Hojlund have already completed big moves.

The summer transfer window is only just officially open but that hasn’t stopped some big clubs from spending big money…

The window really opened on June 15 but plenty of deals have already been agreed and stars unveiled by their new clubs. All the Premier League deals are here.

Then there are the initial-loan deals agreed in previous windows that become permanent this summer, either through options or obligations.

Here are the 20 biggest transfers in world football completed so far this summer…

1) Anthony Gordon (Newcastle to Barcelona) – £69m

Not a deal that many of us saw coming, but the England winger has always been in demand among those who ought to know a player when they see one. There is some conjecture over possible add-ons and Manchester United must surely take note when Barca plead poverty over Marcus Rashford.

MORE: Anthony Gordon to Barcelona is a bemusing but welcome move for Tuchel and England

2) Jeremy Jacquet (Rennes to Liverpool) – £55m

Jacquet signed for Arne Slot but will likely play a big role for Andoni Iraola, especially with Ibrahima Konate following Slot out of Anfield. The France Under-21 defender is expected to be fit for pre-season having been sidelined since February.

3) Jan Paul van Hecke (Brighton to Spurs) – £52m

The lure of Roberto De Zerbi – and refusal from Spurs to stay in their transfer lane – has translated to some significant market moves in north London.

4) Marc Cucurella (Chelsea to Real Madrid) – £47.5m

The Spanish giants were quick off the mark as the Premier League transfer window opened and snapped up Cucurella as Chelsea try and claw back some money before a season with no Champions League football.

5) Piero Hincapie (Bayer Leverkusen to Arsenal) – £45m

Hincapie is set to make his loan move to Arsenal a permanent one – but could be on his way again almost immediately, with Barcelona said to be sniffing. How many levers have they left to pull?

6) Geovany Quenda (Sporting Lisbon to Chelsea) – £44m

This was a deal done in March 2025, but Quenda has remained in Lisbon until this summer, while Dario Essugo got a headstart at Chelsea. The winger made only a dozen league and Champions League starts last term due to a metatarsal injury but was still good for four goals and seven assists.

7) Rasmus Hojlund (Man Utd to Napoli) – £38m

United got half of their money back for Hojlund when Napoli qualified for the Champions League, obligating them to sign the Denmark striker permanently.

8) Lois Openda (RB Leipzig to Juventus) – £35m

Juve are obliged to sign Openda permanently, despite a miserable first year in Turin during which he scored a solitary Serie A goal and played only five league minutes since February.

9) Victor Munoz (Osasuna to Liverpool) – £34.5m

Will Newcastle ever tire of getting bullied in the transfer window by Liverpool?

10) Orkun Kokcu (Benfica to Besiktas) – £25.9m

The Turkey midfielder returned to his homeland on loan last summer, with Besiktas now obliged to make it a permanent arrangement. They are cool with that… especially if Kocku shines at the World Cup and tempts in one of the Premier League big boys. He looks sharp in the warm-up friendlies.

11) Rodrigo Zalazar (Braga to Sporting) – £25.9m

Sporting broke the domestic transfer record to sign Uruguayan midfielder Zalazar from Braga, who will bank the highest fee ever paid between two Portuguese clubs.

12) Afonso Moreira (Lyon to Leverkusen) – £25.5m

Not sure any extra information is needed beyond his middle name: Bastardo.

13) Zadok Yohanna (AIK to Brighton) – £24.2m

Coming to an eight-year Chelsea contract for £110m near you sometime around summer 2028.

14) Donyell Malen (Aston Villa to Roma) – £21.65m

The Netherlands striker caught fire in Serie A, scoring 14 goals in 18 appearances since moving from Villa, initially on loan, in January.

15) Patrick Zabi (Reims to Paris FC) – £21.6m

The Parisians reportedly beat off interest from Manchester United and Newcastle to sign the young midfielder, whom Reims signed for only £100,000 two years ago.

16) Florentino Luis (Benfica to Burnley) – £20.8m

There was an obligation to buy and it has been triggered. The player may now be wishing there was a relegation clause in the deal.

17) Merlin Rohl (Freiburg to Everton) – £20m

Just by staying up, Everton were obliged to cough up for the German midfielder, with most of his six starts coming in the final four games of the campaign.

18) Aleksandar Stankovic (Club Brugge to Inter Milan) – £19.9m

Inter used their €23m buy-back option on Stankovic, son of Dejan, after the defensive midfielder’s fine season with the Belgian champions. Stankovic moved to Bruges from Inter last summer for €9.5m.