Uefa believes “a clear two-speed system” is emerging in the transfer market as a result of the huge spending by Premier League clubs this summer.

In its latest European club talent and competition landscape report, European football’s governing body laid bare just how dominant the transfer activity of English clubs has become.

Uefa’s report said that the estimated €4.6bn (£4bn) spend by Premier League clubs is “larger than that of the next eight largest European countries combined”.

Andrea Traverso, Uefa’s executive director of finance, said that this trend “raises concerns”.

“Transfer values continue to rise sharply, particularly in the English market, increasing future pressure on club financial results,” Traverso wrote.

“These developments also point to an increasing concentration of talent and a growing polarisation of the market, with the emergence of a clear two-speed system.

“English clubs were involved in more than 60% of the deals and paid an average of around €24m (£20.7m) per inbound player, compared with only around €4m (£3.4m) to €5m (£4.3m) in the other major European leagues, underlining a widening gap in purchasing power.”

Traverso said that any “correction in transfer values” or “slowdown in buyer demand” could have serious implications for any club carrying debt.

The report added that the transfer spend of the 20 Premier League clubs this year is “equivalent to 56% of their annual revenue” – much higher than the 33% average of the pre-Covid decade.

Uefa also highlighted the increasing trend for English clubs to do big-value transfers between each other, which showed a 44% increase to €1.55bn (£1.33bn).

The English domestic market was “as large in fee value as the next five market flows combined”.

A market flow describes league-to-league deals. After the English domestic market, the next most lucrative was the German Bundesliga to the Premier League, at €690m (£594m).

The number of European transfer fees paid above €50m has significantly increased, from 14 in the summer of 2024 to 23 in 2025. In 2026 there was another jump to 35 such deals, of which Premier League clubs were responsible for 29.

With pressure to pass financial regulations, clubs have increasingly looked to sell academy players as they provide pure profit on the books.

European clubs generated an estimated profit of €6.8bn (£5.85bn) on these sales over the summer, an increase of €655m (£564bn) on 2025.

Uefa also found little evidence of clubs using multi-club ownership structures to move players for inflated or reduced fees.

Total transfer fees of such deals were €152m (£130.8m) with an estimated market value of €159m (£136.8m).

More than half of this spend came from transfers between Chelsea and Strasbourg.

Manchester United have borrowed another £90m since 30 June – and confirmed they spent £191.7m on new players this summer.

United bought Andrey Santos from Chelsea on 13 July, Youri Tielemans from Aston Villa on 14 July and Carlos Baleba from Brighton on 25 August.

The fees the club stated they spent on the trio at the time the transfers were announced added up to £153m, and it is not clear where the additional sum has been spent.

The club have been approached for comment.

Confirmation of the additional borrowing of £90m was included in a more detailed filing to the New York Stock Exchange on Thursday, following Wednesday’s release of their 2025-26 accounts to 30 June, and showed their overall debt was still more than £1bn despite major cost-cutting measures implemented by Sir Jim Ratcliffe since he became minority owner in 2024.

United confirmed it made three further drawdowns from its revolving credit limit, on 29 and 31 July and 28 August, totalling £120m. It then paid back £30m on 21 September.

It takes United’s overall debt to £1.15bn, made up of the historic debt, which now stands at £578m, the £200m outstanding on its revolving credit facility, and £375m in outstanding transfer fees.

That is a £72m reduction on the £447m they stated was owed in transfer fees in the 2024-25 accounts. However, it remains a large sum, with £104.8m due in between one and two years and £51.9m in between two and five years – with the remainder due in the next 12 months.

The club say payments for their most recent transfers “are due within the next five years”.

Bob Pettit, the first man to receive the NBA’s MVP (most valuable player) award, has died aged 93.

Pettit won the award twice, in its first year in 1955-56 and again in 1958-59, when he topped the scoring charts in both seasons.

He was also named an NBA All-Star in all 11 of his seasons and was the first player to reach 20,000 points.

Having starred for Louisiana State University, Pettit was signed by Milwaukee Hawks in the draft in 1954.

The team then moved to St Louis, and Pettit stayed with them for the rest of his career which included winning the NBA title in 1958 with victory over the Boston Celtics.

He reached two more finals with the Hawks in 1960 and 1961, and retired in 1965 with a career average of 26.4 points and 16.2 rebounds per game.

The Basketball Hall of Fame confirmed Pettit’s death, describing him as “a true giant of the game”.

No cause of death was given.