Get all your news in one place.
100's of premium titles.
One app.
Start reading
The Guardian - UK
The Guardian - UK
Sport
Ed Aarons

Premier League CEO says Brexit contributed to record January spending

Chief executive of Premier League, Richard Masters
Chief executive of Premier League, Richard Masters, said the league had earned an advantage over its European competitors. Photograph: Alex Morton/Getty Images for Premier League

The Premier League’s chief executive, Richard Masters, believes the visa system introduced by the Football Association after Brexit contributed to the record £815m spent by Premier League clubs during the January transfer window and has called for it to be tweaked.

Brexit prevents English clubs from signing foreign players until they are 18 and led to a points-based government body endorsement (GBE) system from 1 January 2021. Masters acknowledged that GBE was introduced in an attempt to increase the number of England-qualified players in the Premier League and said that leaving the EU meant clubs had been forced to pay a premium to sign the best emerging stars.

Sign up to read this article
Read news from 100's of titles, curated specifically for you.
Already a member? Sign in here
Related Stories
Top stories on inkl right now
One subscription that gives you access to news from hundreds of sites
Already a member? Sign in here
Our Picks
Fourteen days free
Download the app
One app. One membership.
100+ trusted global sources.