Clubs in England and Saudi Arabia have driven spending on player agents in international transfer deals to a record-breaking $888 million this year, according to FIFA.

The governing body highlighted instances of service fees exceeding $10 million, acknowledging that despite its efforts to regulate agent payments, there are challenges.

FIFA recently faced a setback in a London court ruling that jeopardises its global regulations. Agents in Europe have contested the rules through legal actions, leading to a delay in their implementation, and England continues to dominate the multi-billion-dollar player transfer market, as per FIFA's latest research.

FIFA said English clubs were "the number one spenders by a long shot" in 2023, with combined spending of more than $280 million on agent commissions in transfers between two clubs in different countries. Money from player transfers between two clubs in the same country does not count in the FIFA numbers.

The total expenditure on agents witnessed a 42% increase in 2022, surpassing the previous peak of $654 million in 2019 by more than one-third.

Italian clubs led the way, with a collective spending of $115.7 million.

Notably, Saudi Arabian clubs, backed by a state-sponsored recruitment initiative, spent $86 million on agents, aiming to enhance their domestic league with high-profile signings like Cristiano Ronaldo, Neymar, and Karim Benzema.

FIFA highlighted 224 cases where the agent service fee exceeded $1 million, constituting almost 69% of the total expenditure. In the majority of deals, agents received fees ranging from $10,000 to $100,000.

Clubs in North and Central America spent $5.4 million across 20 transfers, while African clubs spent less than $200,000, according to FIFA.