Brazil spends less than Greece in the transfer window — and that says everything about its football
With just €54.3 million invested, the Brasileirão ranks 13th in the world for mid-year transfer spending, according to Transfermarkt.
The home of football sits in 13th place. Not in the FIFA rankings — but in the table of who spends the most in the mid-year transfer window. And that stings.
According to research by Blog do Rafael Reis using Transfermarkt data, the 20 clubs of the Brasileirão have combined for €54.3 million in signings during this window. Sounds like a lot? It isn't. Leagues in Greece and the Czech Republic have already invested more than Brazilian football in the same period.
The pace is sluggish — and the excuse that the window only just officially opened doesn't hold up. Clubs were already free to negotiate purchases and sales beforehand; they simply couldn't register new signings yet. In other words, timing isn't the problem.
The most expensive signing in Brazil this mid-year window is Gabriel Pec, brought to Cruzeiro for €10.5 million. A figure that, in any relevant European league, would barely cover a squad player's fee.
Globally, the window is already moving R$26 billion. Brazil, five-time world champions, watches from a distance.
The question that lingers: when will Brazilian football stop exporting its talent to the World Cup and start keeping it — or at least competing on equal footing in the market? The sixth star won't be built on a yellow shirt alone.