What is a transfer deal sheet?
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Premier League clubs need to complete a 'deal sheet' in order to complete a transfer in the last two hours of a transfer window.
Clubs often leave their transfer dealings to the very last minute, and therefore have to submit a form to the Premier League to make sure that a transfer can go ahead.
The deal sheet allows a club to confirm that an agreement has been reached and also give themselves more time to submit the remaining documentation.
The Premier League and the English Football League have both set a transfer deadline for Monday, 1 September at 19:00 BST.
The deal sheet cannot be used before 17:00 BST and needs to be filled in before the transfer window closes.
Once the deal sheet arrives with the Premier League, the clubs have an additional two hours, or until 21:00 BST to submit all the required paperwork.
If all the necessary paperwork has still not been submitted after the 21:00 BST deadline has passed, the transfer will not be able to proceed.
Enzo Fernandez completed his move to Chelsea from Benfica in January 2023 after the Blues submitted a last-minute deal sheet to get the transfer over the line.
However, Blackburn Rovers failed to sign Orlando City's Duncan McGuire in 2024 after the club failed to submit the deal sheet into the EFL's system on time.
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What does a deal sheet look like?
The deal sheet is a simple form and clubs have to state:
The selling club
The buying club
The transfer fee
The guaranteed sums
The contingency payments
Premier League clubs spent £179m on deadline day last summer
What happens with international transfers?
If a club is trying to sign a player from abroad, they will need to also meet the Fifa matching system deadline in order to get international clearance.
This is an online system that makes the international transfer of players between clubs quicker, smoother and more transparent.
The buying club have to upload all the information to the system, and the international club also has to match all the details before midnight.
The FA also has to request international clearance, and they then inform the Premier League and the clubs that the transfer can proceed.
The British club will also need to apply for a work permit before the transfer window closes.
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