When does the January 2025 transfer window close?

Manchester City boss Pep Guardiola is also unsure what lies ahead of De Bruyne.

The January transfer window will be a bit of a misnomer again this year with the winter registration period actually set to extend into February.

Clubs across the world will be looking to take the opportunity to bolster their squads, with the window set to open in early January and remaining open for around a month.

Will there be any late transfer window drama this year? Here's the key dates for your diary...

When does the January 2025 Premier League transfer window close?

This winter could be a busy one in the transfer market (Image credit: Nikki Dyer - LFC/Liverpool FC via Getty Images)

Why doesn't the window close on Friday 31 January?

The Premier League window opens on Wednesday January 1 2025, which seems logical - but it's actually going to close on Monday February 3 2025 at 11pm UK time. The window will run to the same dates across the EFL, too.

Scotland, Germany Italy, France, and Spain will all close their windows on the same day (February 3), though not necessarily all at the exact same time of day.

Premier League clubs have until Monday February 3 to finalise any new signings (Image credit: Getty Images)

Why the later closure, when the usual January 31 is a perfectly good working day (a Friday)? The answer seems to be 'because', really. Clubs across Europe stated a preference for a slightly later closure date because not all of them are opening on January 1.

There are a handful of countries closing slightly later (the Netherlands and Portugal on February 4, for instance), but as far as Premier League clubs are concerned, that only means they can sell to those countries after the English deadline has passed - not buy.

The Saudi Pro League will meanwhile close its transfer window a bit earlier, on Thursday January 30.

That leaves Turkey as the most likely Premier League dumping ground after the Premier League window shuts: their window is not set to close until Tuesday February 11.

Can players be signed after the transfer deadline?

As far as Premier League clubs are concerned, only if the players is a free agent and the club in question has room in their 25-man squad, otherwise they'll have to wait until the summer.

That means we're very unlikely to see any incomings after the January transfer window.

Players can be released by Premier League clubs at any time, but will generally be unable to sign for another club outside the buying country's transfer window.