Saturday, July 25, 2026

The summer's first real drama is not in a transfer office, it is in the Champions League qualifiers, where clubs you have never heard of are playing for their continental lives. In the second qualifying round first legs on July 21 and 22, 2026, Swedish debutants Mjallby thumped Gibraltar's Lincoln Red Imps 3-0, Cyprus' Omonia held on for a 1-0 win over Kazakhstan's Kairat despite going down to 10 men after 33 minutes, and Albania's Egnatia twice fought back to draw 3-3 with Slovenia's Celje in a six-goal thriller (via UEFA).

The knife-edge stuff comes next week. The second legs land on July 28 and 29, and every tie is one bad night from over: win and a club edges toward the league phase, the single 36-team table that now decides who reaches the knockouts, and lose and the continental summer ends before August even starts (via UEFA).

Manchester City spent 116 million pounds (about 155 million dollars) on a holding midfielder, and it was not even the biggest British deal of the week. City confirmed the signing of Elliot Anderson from Nottingham Forest on a five-year contract, days after the 23-year-old started all eight games in England's run to third place at the World Cup. It clears the 115 million pounds Real Madrid paid for Jude Bellingham in 2023 (via Sky Sports).

The true record, though, belongs to Chelsea. Two days earlier, on July 22, 2026, Chelsea completed a 117 million pound (about 157 million dollars) move for England forward Morgan Rogers from Aston Villa on a long-term deal at Stamford Bridge, nudging past Anderson to become the most expensive British transfer yet. Between them, the two deals show how far English clubs will stretch for home-grown talent this summer (via Sky Sports).

The women's game landed its own statement signing. Alexia Putellas, the two-time Ballon d'Or winner and heartbeat of Barcelona's dominant side, completed a move to newly promoted London City Lionesses, described by Sky Sports as the biggest transfer in Women's Super League history (via Sky Sports). The Michele Kang-owned club has spent the window assembling a superteam, adding former England goalkeeper Mary Earps and, in France forward Kadidiatou Diani from Lyon, a sixth marquee arrival (via Goal).

Barcelona kept reshaping their attack even as Putellas left. The Catalans confirmed the signing of Germany forward Karim Adeyemi from Borussia Dortmund on a five-year deal, a reported 29 million euros (about 34 million dollars) including add-ons, their second summer arrival after England winger Anthony Gordon (via ESPN).

Preseason handed AC Milan an 18-year-old headline. Teenage striker Francesco Camarda struck twice to rescue a 2-2 friendly draw at Celtic, exactly the kind of night Milan want as they lean on the academy graduate to lead the line, though the afternoon soured when defender Mario Gila limped off barely 22 minutes in (via Football Italia).

Down south, the reigning Serie A champions are shopping at the top of the market. Football Italia reports Napoli are weighing a move for former Juventus striker Dusan Vlahovic should Romelu Lukaku leave, a bold reshuffle of the attack under new coach Massimiliano Allegri. Treat it as unconfirmed for now, but it signals how aggressively the champions plan to spend to defend their title (via Football Italia).

Nottingham Forest have handed the rebuild to a coach who wins with front-foot football. Oliver Glasner, the Austrian who lifted the FA Cup at Crystal Palace playing an aggressive back-three system, was appointed head coach at the City Ground, succeeding Vitor Pereira (via Sky Sports).

He wasted no time reaching for a familiar face. Forest's first signing of his tenure is Austria midfielder Xaver Schlager, a free agent after his RB Leipzig contract expired, who thrived under Glasner at Wolfsburg. The two-year deal brings in a runner built for the high-pressing, ball-hunting midfield Glasner wants (via ESPN).

Lionel Messi has broken his silence, but not on the one question everyone is asking. Days after Argentina's 1-0 extra-time defeat to Spain in the World Cup final, the 39-year-old thanked supporters and wrote that the pain is immense and it will take time for the wound to heal, while saying nothing about his international future (via ESPN). He has since gone home to Rosario to rest, and coach Lionel Scaloni says he has not yet spoken to his captain about whether he carries on, leaving the sport's biggest open question hanging over the offseason (via ESPN).