Clubs worldwide made a record 22 779 international transfers in men's soccer in 2024 for a total spend of $8.59 billion, world soccer's governing body Fifa said in its Global Transfer Report published on Thursday.
The figure is the second-highest spend after a record-breaking 2023 when clubs spent $9.63 billion on international transfers.
Fifa also said a record 78 742 international player transfers were completed in 2024 across men's and women's professional soccer and amateur soccer.
English clubs were once again the No 1 spenders with $1.88 billion spent on incoming transfers while they also received $1.34 billion for outgoing players.
The most expensive international transfer was Argentina forward Julian Alvarez's move from Manchester City to Atletico Madrid in a deal worth around €75 million plus €20 million in potential add-ons.
The top five international transfers also include Goncalo Ramos from Benfica to Paris St Germain, Leny Yoro from Lille to Manchester United, Joao Neves from Benfica to Paris St Germain and Dani Olmo from RB Leipzig to Barcelona.
With the top five transfers costing no less than a reported €55 million, Real Madrid's deal to sign France forward Kylian Mbappe from Paris St Germain for free represented a massive coup for the European champions.
PSG were the top spending European club on international transfers followed by Manchester United and Olympique Lyonnais.
Women's soccer hit a record spend of $15.6 million on international transfers in 2024, more than double that of the spend in 2023 ($6.1 million).
The biggest transfer saw American side Bay FC sign Racheal Kundananji from Real Madrid for a reported $860 000 to set a then world record in women's soccer.
That record was broken when Chelsea made Naomi Girma the first female million-dollar player, signing the American defender this month for a fee reported by British media to be in the region of £900 000.
Bay FC and Chelsea were the top spending women's teams followed by Barcelona and Orlando Pride.
Amateur soccer also saw a total of 53 679 transfers, a 4.3 per cent increase on the previous year.