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Chelsea the big spenders on agent fees

Fees paid to agents by men’s teams in England’s top four divisions raced past the half-billion-pound barrier for the first time this season, according to data disclosed by the Football Association (FA) on Wednesday afternoon.

Chelsea spent £65.1million on agent fees, topping the club list for the third season running under the ownership of BlueCo, a consortium led by Clearlake Capital and Todd Boehly. In BlueCo’s other season at the helm, Chelsea were the second-highest spenders on agents. In 2025-26, Chelsea accounted for 12 per cent of the agent spend of the 92 clubs in the football league.

In all, Chelsea have spent £272million on agent fees in four seasons under their current owners, significantly more than anyone else in that period bar Manchester City (£236.7m). The jump to the next highest spender in that time, Manchester United, at £152.6m, is significant. Indeed, only three other clubs have spent more than £100m on agents over the past four years: Liverpool, Arsenal and Aston Villa.

Villa were the second-highest spenders behind Chelsea. The gulf between first and second is huge but Villa spending so much on agents in a period when their transfer activity was muted — they spent less than anyone else in the division last summer, though did top that up in January — is noteworthy.

In percentage terms, the biggest increase in agent spending in England this season came at two promoted clubs: Sunderland and Wrexham.  Sunderland’s surprising ascent to the Premier League last May set off a transfer spend which has neared £200million this season, and their £10.6m spend on agents represented a 390 per cent increase on a year ago in the Championship.

At Wrexham, promoted from League One last May and now hopeful of a Championship play-off spot, their £3.7m spend on agents was a 367 per cent increase on 2024-25.

They were not, however, the biggest spenders in the second tier. That accolade fell to Ipswich Town who, like Leeds United a year ago, continued to pay high agent fees following Premier League relegation. Ipswich’s £11.7million spend was roughly one-sixth of the Championship’s £69.7m total. 

Beyond the top two divisions, spending in League One grew substantially, up 85 per cent to £14million, more than the previous two seasons combined. Luton Town, who were in the Premier League just two years ago, accounted for nearly a quarter of the sum. In League Two, fees dropped slightly, down five per cent to £2.6m.

 

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