A transfer fee is spread evenly across the contract in a club's accounts. Enter the fee, contract length and wage to see the annual amortisation charge and the total yearly squad-cost impact under Financial Fair Play / Profitability & Sustainability rules.
Annual amortisation
£12.0M
£60M ÷ 5y
Annual book cost
£20.0M
amortisation + wage
Total commitment
£100.0M
fee + wages over 5y
For informational and educational purposes only. 18+
In a club's accounts a transfer fee is not expensed in one go — it is spread evenly across the length of the player's contract. A £60M signing on a five-year deal costs £12M per year on the books, which is the figure that counts toward Financial Fair Play and Profitability & Sustainability limits.
UEFA and the Premier League cap the amortisation period at five years even for longer contracts, closing a loophole where clubs handed out very long deals to shrink the annual accounting charge.
The annual cost: amortisation plus gross wages (and agent fees). A big headline fee is manageable if spread over a long contract, which is why clubs weigh annual book cost, not the transfer figure, against their squad-cost budget.
Add-ons and bonuses, agent fees, signing-on fees, sell-on clauses and player-trading profit (which is booked in full at sale). It is a clear starting point, not a full accounting treatment.
