What is a Transfer Deadline Day Deal Sheet (Explained)

The transfer window is now closed, with Premier League clubs no longer able to sign players – unless they’re free agents – until the summer.

It has not been the most exciting January transfer window, but there have been a number of deals and plenty of rumours to keep us going throughout the winter.

And Premier League business may not be done just yet.

Clubs often scramble around in the final hours of the window to ensure that transfers can be finalised within the allotted time – and that’s where the Premier League’s ‘deal sheet’ comes into play. But what is it? And why do clubs use it? GIVEMESPORT are here to answer those questions and provide an explainer for you to brush up your knowledge on deal sheets.

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What is a Deal Sheet

Time equals money in the world of Premier League transfer business – and so the final hours of the windows are critical to ensure that all 20 sides are primed and ready for their impending fixtures. In the top tier, all clubs are allowed to complete a deal sheet in a two-hour period between 5pm and 7pm.

As the 2026 January transfer transfer window closed at 7pm on Monday, February 2, the deal sheet cannot be used before the 5pm mark but does need to be handed in (fully completed) before the transfer window closes. Clubs are, as a result, given extra time – two hours, to be precise – to complete deals past the deadline.

The additional time is usually used by the clubs to complete, review and eventually submit any outstanding documentation. Once the sheet arrives and is approved, clubs have got another two hours – typically until 9pm – in order to submit all the relevant paperwork in full. In layman’s terms, the renowned deal sheet is proof to the Premier League governing body that two clubs have agreed a transfer, but extra time – the Fergie time of the transfer world – is required to get all the official paperwork sorted between both clubs.

However, according to the Premier League’s official website, any overseas transfer still have to adhere to the FIFA Transfer Matching System (TMS) deadline of midnight. But what is FIFA’s TMS? In the case of an international transfer, both clubs – buyers and sellers – are required to register it all on FIFA’s tailor-made system in order for international clearance to be generated and approved.

The would-be buyers are tasked with uploading all the information and the sellers have to enter the system and ensure that all the details are correct. Not only do the Premier League require clearance documentation, but the English FA do, too.

On the basis that everything is in accordance, the foreign association will grant clearance to the FA, who will then tell both the club and the Premier League. Then, the division’s chiefs will receive their very own copy to file away to ensure that all incoming players are officially allowed to transfer to England – this same happens for Welsh clubs.

The Process Involved in a Deal Sheet

Now that you’ve got the initial process of a deal sheet in memory, let’s take a deeper dive into the documentation needed for a deal to be signed, sealed and delivered. When it comes to registering a player officially, clubs must provide the Premier League with all documents relating to the transfer: the contract, the transfer agreement between all clubs involved, permission to work in the UK (if needed), international clearance if it’s an overseas deal, as well as any transfer levy that might apply to a specific deal.

Within the dying hours of the window, all clubs are given a heads-up to admit any outstanding transfer business so that the Football Operations and Regulatory departments, who are tasked with working late into the night, are ready to deal with any last-ditch queries, with them typically being documentation-based.

Once the Premier League have received all the paperwork from a club, it is marked against the Premier League and Football Association (FA) rules to ensure the transfer is in compliance. On the odd occasion, FIFA regulations are also checked against them to ensure that due diligence and best practice has occurred.

The Premier League are then tasked with reviewing the documentation before advising whether the player can be registered or not. Typically, they will tell clubs whether additional paperwork is required before a transfer completion – most commonly, international clearance or any amendment(s) to existing paperwork. This is not the case for those with a free agent status on their head, though. Clubs are able to progress and make deals with free agents outside the window given that they are unattached and negotiations with their current employers are non-existent.

The days of using a fax machine to complete transfer are retired, however, according to Premier League chiefs (via talkSPORT). Instead of using old-age technology, clubs have an array of different options in which paperwork can be sent to the division’s higher-ups, including desktop faxes and scanned documents via email.

High-Profile Examples of Deal Sheets Being Used for Signings

Now, let’s get into the nitty-gritty of transfer dealings: the examples that have used or failed to use a deal sheet in yesteryear. A perfect example of the deal sheet that instantly springs to mind is David De Gea. The Spaniard’s move from Manchester United to Real Madrid famously fell through at the last hurdle – also known as the eleventh hour – when a deal sheet was not supplied before the aforementioned deadline, all thanks to a fax machine.

A transfer agreement had been made between both European giants in the lead-up to the deadline, with Keylor Navas reportedly heading in the other direction – but it never came to fruition. A multi-million pound deal was prevented by a piece of office machinery – classic.

On a more positive note, remember Russia and Arsenal star Andrey Arshavin? His switch to the Gunners from Zenit Saint Petersburg, way back in January 2009, was approved through the north Londoners’ use of a deal sheet. The winger moved to the Emirates Stadium hours after the deadline had passed – but thanks to applying and having a deal sheet granted, Arsenal were able to snare his signature anyway.