With just over two weeks until the summer transfer window slams shut, La Liga clubs are rushing to make their final moves of the summer to set them up to be competitive in the league until at least January.
Now that we have a general idea of what each club has been trying to get done this summer, we at GSFN think there’s no better time to take a broader look at each club to see where they stack up in terms of their business over the last few months.
Without further ado, here is every La Liga club graded based on their transfer activity, with information on prices coming courtesy of Transfermarkt. We have ranked the clubs from worst to best, so read until the end to see who we’ve put on top of the pile.
20: Girona – F
Girona have been a prime example of how not to do business after a breakout season. It is only natural that after overachieving last season, many other clubs will come calling in search of a bargain, but losing almost all of your stars is definitely not how to build upon a 3rd place finish.
With stars like Artem Dovbyk, Aleix García, Eric García and Yan Couto all seeing the exit door, and less proven players like Abel Ruíz, Donny van de Beek and Bryan Gil coming in as replacements, it is difficult to see them replicating their form next season. Míchel will have his work cut out for him. The only benefit is that they have money left to work with.
Total spent: €21 million
Total earned: €51.5 million
Net spend: +€30.5 million
19: Rayo Vallecano – F
The main issue surrounding Rayo Vallecano’s business is that they have done no major business, as they are yet to sign anyone on anything more than a free transfer this season.
Combine this with the fact that they have let their starting goalkeeper leave for Valencia where he will seemingly play second fiddle, without a replacement brought in, Rayo could be in a dangerous position ahead of next season. The departure of talismanic striker Radamel Falcao is surely going to be a loss to the dressing room as well.
Total spent: €0
Total earned: €2 million
Net spend: +€2 million
18: Deportivo Alavés – D
Deportivo Alavés face a similar problem to Girona this season as they look to keep up their form following on from an over-achieving 10th place finish last season. Unfortunately, they have taken a similar path to Girona in that they have let some of their top performers leave.
The departures of Javi López, Rubén Duarte and Andoni Gorosabel could well hurt Alavés’ prospects next season, as well as the end of Samu Omorodion’s loan, although the club will be hopeful that the signing of Asier Villalibre from Athletic Club might fill this gap.
Total spent: €5.5 million
Total earned: €12.5 million
Net spend +€7 million
17: RCD Espanyol – D
Espanyol face an uphill battle to stay up in La Liga next season after they earned their place in the top flight through the playoffs last season.
The Catalan club haven’t invested in what is needed in order to be competitive in the Spanish top flight, and have let a few of their players go in the process. Loan deals for Tottenham Hotspur’s Alejo Véliz and Union Berlin’s Alex Král are the standout moves, but the club may have been hoping veteran striker Joselu would have given them one more season after his performances for Real Madrid last season.
Total spent: €400k
Total earned: €1.5 million
Net spend: +€1.1 million
16: CD Leganés – D
Leganés are another team facing a tough transition back to top-flight football next season following a few seasons down in the second tier. Having been out of La Liga following their relegation in 2019/20, the majority of their players now have little to no experience of playing in the top tier.
They then allowed one of their players who does have experience in La Liga, Jorge Miramon, to leave for Cyprus on a free transfer. As well as this they have only brought a handful of La Liga quality players in, with the highlight being Sevilla’s Marko Dmitrovic. The bottom line is that Leganés will face a tough time staying up next season.
Total spent: €1 million
Total earned: €4 million
Net spend +€3 million
15: Real Valladolid – D
Real Valladolid complete the line-up of newly-promoted sides on our list, and have done the best business of the three, but could still potentially struggle next season. The signing of Stipe Biuk from MLS is an unknown quantity whilst Victor Meseguer and André Ferreira from Granada could either hit or miss.
The combination of a handful of other signings amounting to a total of around €14 million spent give Valladolid the best chance of staying up of the newly-promoted sides, but it will still be an uphill battle.
Total spent: €14 million
Total earned: €3.6 million
Net spend: €10.4 million
14: Getafe CF – D
Getafe’s transfer dealings are highlighted by the fact that Mason Greenwood is now departing the club upon the end of his loan without any real replacement. Peter Federico from Real Madrid’s reserves is still not up to the task and nobody else has been brought in of Greenwood’s attacking calibre.
Elsewhere, the window has been fairly uneventful for Getafe, with Nemanja Maksimovic’s departure on a free transfer being another blow.
Total spent: €7 million
Total earned: €18.5 million
Net spend: +€11.5 million
13: RCD Mallorca – D
Mallorca are another team who have sold their starting goalkeeper and not found a suitable replacement. The departure of Predrag Rajkovic to Saudi Arabia and the return of Leo Román from his loan at Real Oviedo leave Mallorca with a severely downgraded choice of goalkeepers for next season.
Elsewhere, Takuma Asano could potentially adapt well to La Liga following his move from Germany, but overall it has been a pretty underwhelming window for Mallorca, which shows little ambition.
Total spent: €1.5 million
Total earned: €10 million
Net spend €8.5 million
12: Real Betis – C
Real Betis could easily have been ranked lower on this list, but none of their departures look like they will have a massive effect on their squad, all whilst freeing up some hefty wages. Their biggest piece of business was to secure Marc Roca’s services permanently after his loan last season, and they look set to continue their solid form from last season and remain on top of city rivals Sevilla.
Total spent: €22.05 million
Total earned: €31.70 million
Net spend: +€9.65 million
11: CA Osasuna – C
Osasuna are another team who have had a pretty underwhelming window, with little activity to speak of, however, the loan deal for Bryan Zaragoza from Bayern Munich could potentially be a good bit of business, whilst the departure of David García to the Qatari league for over €8 million isn’t a bad sale either given the wages it will free up.
I’d expect Osasuna to continue from where they left off last season, and achieve another solid mid-table finish based on how their squad is currently shaping up.
Total spent: €3.05 million
Total earned: €8.75 million
Net spend: +€5.70 million
10: Real Sociedad – C
Real Sociedad’s transfer window suffers massively due to the loss of Robin Le Normand to Atlético Madrid. The centre-back was one of Spain’s standout performers at Euro 2024 and will be a big miss for La Real.
The signings of Luka Sucic from RB Salzburg and Sergio Gómez are worth keeping an eye on, but much of Real Sociedad’s window will depend on whether they keep a hold of stars Mikel Merino and Martín Zubimendi. It is always worth keeping an eye on their youth prospects as well.
Total spent: €25.5 million
Total earned: €37 million
Net spend: +€11.5 million
9: Valencia CF – C
Valencia haven’t had much business to speak of this summer, but this also means they haven’t shown any of their stars the door. The signing of Stole Dimitrievski is a strange move given Giorgi Mamardashvili is still at the club, but it doesn’t necessarily harm the squad either.
If Valencia can hold onto some of their younger stars who have stepped up to the plate in previous seasons, they could well be on course for another top-half finish, which is a win considering where they were just a couple of seasons ago.
Total spent: €150k
Total earned €0
Net spend €150k
8: Celta de Vigo – C
The permanent signing of Unai Núñez is a good bit of business for a player who has played well for Celta for the last two seasons. The move to send Jørgen Strand Larsen out on loan to Wolves seems to be the right move as well.
Their biggest miss will be Manu Sánchez, who was sold to Alavés, but he isn’t necessarily irreplaceable either. It is worth keeping an eye on some of the youth call-ups, too, to see how they integrate themselves into the squad.
Total spent: €7 million
Total earned: €3 million
Net spend: €4 million
7: Villarreal – C
The signing of Manchester United centre-back Willy Kambala highlights the transfer window for Villarreal, and it will be interesting to see how he adapts to Spanish football. The signings of Nicolas Pépé and Pape Gueye could also potentially pay off.
The departures of Alexander Sørloth and Filip Jørgensen are undoubtedly blows, but the hefty fees paid by both Atlético Madrid and Chelsea go a fair way towards easing the pain. The exits of veterans like Alberto Moreno, Pepe Reina and Manu Trigueros are likely to free up plenty of wages as well.
Total spent: €14 million
Total earned: €74.5 million
Net spend: +€60.5 million
6: UD Las Palmas – C
If someone told you that Scottish players Scott McKenna and Oli McBurnie had signed for Las Palmas, you’d likely believe they were referring to something from Football Manager, but this has actually happened, with both men swapping England for the sunny setting of Gran Canaria. The signing of veteran goalie Jasper Cillessen could be a good move, too.
The club’s moves may not include the biggest stars in the world but at least they are doing something interesting, and could well stand a good chance of staying up as a result if their transfers pay off. The departures of Sergi Cardona and Saúl Coco could well be felt, however.
Total spent: €4 million
Total earned: €7.5 million
Net spend: +€3.5 million
5: Sevilla FC – C
It was always going to be a tough summer for Sevilla, with the departure of key man Youssef En-Nesyri to Fenerbahçe. However, the free transfer of Kelechi Iheanacho and the loan of Saúl Ñíguez from Atlético could potentially turn out to be shrewd bits of business. Arsenal loanee Albert Sambi Lokonga will be interesting to watch as well.
The loss of veterans such as Óli Torres, Erik Lamela, Ivan Rakitic and Sergio Ramos could well be felt next season, but they also go some way to clearing the wage bill and solving the club’s financial issues.
Total spent: €8 million
Total earned: €19.8 million
Net spend: +€11.8 million
4: Athletic Club – B
Athletic Club always have to be admired for their success despite their restrictions on only signing players of Basque origin. The signing of Álvaro Djaló from Braga represents the club’s third-highest fee ever paid and is a reasonable fee for a player yet to enter their prime. Andoni Gorosabel from Alavés could potentially be a good addition, too.
If the club can keep hold of star man Nico Williams, there is no limit to how high they can go next season, with the potential for more silverware very much on the cards.
Total spent: €15 million
Total earned: €8.5 million
Net spend: €6.5 million
3: Barcelona – B
Barcelona will likely be reeling from the missed opportunity of signing Nico Williams from Athletic Club. Following his immensely successful partnership with Lamine Yamal at Euro 2024, the move would have been a managerial and commercial masterclass.
Meanwhile, the return of Dani Olmo is a decent piece of business but many Barca fans will likely have been left wanting more. It will be interesting to see if they turn to the market again before it closes in just over two weeks.
Total spent: €57.7 million
Total earned: €18 million
Net spend: €39.7 million
2: Atlético Madrid – A
Atlético Madrid have possibly made the biggest moves in La Liga this summer, highlighted by the signing of Julián Álvarez from Manchester City for €75 million. The signings of Alexander Sørloth and Robin Le Normand are also big moves and a real statement of intent from the Madrid side.
The only thing that could possibly push the club into an A+ rating would be the heavily rumoured transfer of Conor Gallagher, which has seemingly hit a roadblock.
Total spent: €141.5 million
Total earned: €21.5 million
Net spend: €120 million
1: Real Madrid – A+
Any club which manages to sign one of the world’s best and most valuable players on a free transfer is always going to find themselves at the top of this list. Real Madrid’s signing of Kylian Mbappé is one of the biggest moves in Spanish football for years, potentially since the signing of Neymar for Barcelona, yet this time around no transfer fee was exchanged.
Combine with this the signing of Brazilian starlet Endrick, and it looks as though Real Madrid are set to continue their domination at the peak of Spanish football for some time.
It remains to be seen how Mbappé will settle into life in Spain, but if the hype is to be believed, Real Madrid will have a ruthless squad on their hands this season.
Total spent: €49 million
Total earned: €13.5 million
Net spend: €35.5 million
Check out the final tier list below:
