Hammers have the 17th biggest wage bill in the world

Premier League clubs have some of the largest wage bills in the world.  A table from the Daily Mail ranks the leading wage spenders for the 2016-17 season. West Ham are ranked 17th in the world with a wage bill estimated to reach £95m next season.

Official financial numbers for the 2016-17 campaign won’t be revealed until later this year at the earliest and by spring 2018 for many. Hence numbers are based on previous spending and estimated increases.

Premier League wealth under the new £5.5 billion TV deal should mean most clubs in the league should be able to afford to compete with all but the world’s very biggest clubs in terms of wage deals for stars.

Premier League spending on transfers last summer was close to £1.2bn, almost double the figure from three years earlier.

This summer it is likely to reach £1.5bn. At a time when ‘ordinary’ Premier League players could start to command fees of £20m and basic wages of £50,000 a week to play in teams who may struggle.