La Liga President Javier Tebas has told Football España that he is not concerned about a talent drain in La Liga, as the Spanish top division is vastly outspent by its rivals in Europe and now Saudi Arabia.
La Liga spent €453m on transfers according to their figures, which are dwarfed by the Premier League’s €3.018b spend. Saudi Arabia was the new player on the market, reaching nearly the billion-mark, with a spend of €957m.
More concerning for La Liga is that Ligue 1 spent €982m, the Bundesliga €767m invested and Serie A reached €1.079b – all apart from the Bundesliga more than doubling that €453m.
Tebas explained that “there are two models, us and Germany, and the leagues that operate at a loss.”
Spain made a net profit of €138m, the Bundesliga of €357m and Ligue 1 was also €55m in the black. Meanwhile Serie A recorded a net spend of €186m, again dwarfed by Saudi Arabia (€892m loss) and the Premier League (€961m loss).
Asked whether he was concerned about whether Spain’s clubs might continue to exist but struggle for star attractions, Tebas explained that he was not worried about it.
“I am not worried about it. Because the spending in Italy and the Premier League is not sustainable. It can’t be sustained. This is a long-term battle and we believe we have the tools to win that battle long-term.”
“In addition, if UEFA’s new Financial Fair Play rules are followed, they will require more fiscal responsibility. In terms of taxes, we are also the worst in Europe, so there’s something in that too.”
“There’s no fear of that. As long as I am here, we will never operate at a loss, and I would never want to choose a model like that of the Premier League.”
Spain’s net spend is in profit in terms of the transfer market for the third time in seven years, €138m more arriving in sales than purchases. Last season this was at negative €44m, and the year before at negative €67m, making this the first year of profit since the post-pandemic season, when La Liga made a profit of €38m.
Previous to that, La Liga made a €139m profit in 2017-18. Few doubt the fact that this will force Spain’s clubs to be more sustainable over the course of the years, but with the combined salary limit dropping by nearly half a billion euros, some are questioning La Liga’s ability to attract star quality, and ultimately lose ground in the market place and on the pitch.
Images and statistics courtesy of La Liga.