This article studies the transfer market for international football players. Analyzing a sample of 5,760 player transfers over 14 years, we provide evidence that clubs in English football pay larger transfer fee premiums compared to clubs in the top leagues of France, Germany, Italy, and Spain. While the popular press often mentions the English premiums, we empirically demonstrate both their existence and their causal source. Using annual data, we show that the dramatic increase in English premiums is causally linked to the 2012 television contracts the EPL signed with domestic and international broadcasters. These findings have policy implications for the clubs, players, and governing bodies of European football, as well as indirect consequences for export‐oriented football clubs.

中文翻译：

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足球转会费溢价与欧洲五巨头

本文研究国际足球运动员的转会市场。通过对14年中5,760名球员转会的样本进行分析，我们提供的证据表明，与法国，德国，意大利和西班牙等顶级联赛中的俱乐部相比，英格兰足球俱乐部支付的转会费溢价更大。尽管大众媒体经常提到英语溢价，但我们从经验上证明了它们的存在和因果关系。使用年度数据，我们显示英语保费的剧增与EPL与国内外广播公司签订的2012年电视合同有因果关系。这些发现对欧洲足球的俱乐部，球员和理事机构具有政策意义，并对出口型足球俱乐部具有间接影响。