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Leeds Transfer Signings In 

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This page is an up-to-date record of players signed by Leeds United in recent seasons. The aim of this page is to hold a record of every first team and recorded development squad signing made by Leeds over the last 40 years and is an ongoing project.

 

All dates and data have been cross-checked with at least two sources and I have made every attempt at recording the most accurate transfer fee although this can sometimes be difficult to clarify. If you've spotted anyone missing please get in touch at lufcdata@gmail.com, I really appreciate any additional help possible.

 

Players who have graduated through the Academy system like Gary Speed and David Batty won't be found on the list below, neither will players under the age of 15, so you won't find Kalvin Phillips in the records below despite him having joined from Wortley Juniors aged 14.

Victor Orta became the club's first Director of Football on 30 May 2017 and spent six years in the role before leaving his role by mutual consent on 2 May 2023.

Georginio Rutter remains the club's all-time record signing after completing a move on January 14th 2023. Leeds agreed a deal with Hoffenheim worth an initial £28m rising to £35.5m with add-ons over a five-and-a-half-year contract.

Leeds appointed Nick Hammond as the club's interim Football Advisor on 15 June 2023 and appointed Gretar Steinsson as the club's first Technical Director on 18 July 2023. Leeds appointed 33-year-old Jordan Miles as the club's new Head of Recruitment on February 6th 2024. Technical Director Gretar Steinsson left his role to begin a new position with the club's ownership group, 49ers Enterprises in November 2024. Alex Davies was also promoted to Head of Recruitment by Leeds United following the departure of Jordan Miles. The club's Head of Football operations Adam Underwood and Head of Football Administration Hannah Cox assumed more responsibility alongside Nick Hammond following the shake up. 

VO: Victor Orta, Leeds Director of Football

NH: Nick Hammond, Leeds Interim Football Advisor on a short-term deal

GS: Gretar Steinsson, Leeds Technical Director.

JM: Jordan Miles, Leeds Head of Recruitment

LEEDS TRANSFERS IN SINCE 1985 

MOST EXPENSIVE LEEDS TRANSFERS IN SINCE 1989/90

 Additional Transfer Details 

Vince Hilaire joined Leeds from Portsmouth on 9 July 1988 for a £190,000 fee which was eventually settled by tribunal.

Leeds completed the signing of Carl Shutt from Bristol City on 23 March 1989 in a part exchange deal which saw Bob Taylor move the other way with Leeds receiving £50,000.

Leeds signed defenders Jon Newsome and David Wetherall from Sheffield Wednesday on 30 May 1991 for a combined fee of £275,000.

Leeds signed David White on 27 December 1993 in an player-exchange deal that saw David Rocastle move the other way in a transfer that valued each player at £2m.


Forward Phil Masinga was signed from Mamelodi Sundowns on 3 August 1994 in a £250,000 deal. 

Lucas Radebe was signed from Kaizer Chiefs for a fee of £250,000 on 5 September 1994 after being spotted by ​Leeds chief scout Geoff Sleight. He was officially granted a
work permit on 8 September 1994.

Leeds agreed a deal with Eintracht Frankfurt to sign Tony Yeboah on 5 January 1995 but all parties agreed terms on 10 January and had to wait until being granted a work permit
on 19 January before officially completing the move. Both clubs were reported to have agreed a £3.4m transfer and a three-year deal with a get-out clause after twelve months, but instead it appears both clubs signed off on an initial six-month loan arrangement with Leeds paying £800,000 up front to assess Yeboah's ability before a permanent deal at the end
of the loan period. Yeboah confirmed the loan deal with the Daily Mail in September 2020: “At that time, Leeds were not sure I could play in English football, so they only loaned me
for six months and wanted to test me before maybe they could sign me.”


Leeds completed the £2.6m signing of Lee Bowyer from Charlton Athletic on 3 July 1996 which made the 19-year-old the most expensive teenager in British transfer history at the time. Charlton insisted the actual correct transfer fee was actually £3.25m for the player.

Leeds completed the signing of goalkeeper Nigel Martyn from Crystal Palace on 26 July 1996 in a £2.25m move which broke the British record fee for a goalkeeper at the time.

Leeds United broke the British transfer record to sign Rio Ferdinand from West Ham on in an £18m deal. He also became the world's most expensive defender. Both clubs agreed
the deal on 22 November 2000 which was completed on 26 November 2000.

Leeds completed the loan signing of Robbie Keane from Internazionale on 20 December 2000 and completed a £12m permanent deal ahead of schedule on 25 April 2001.
Leeds spent an initial £1m fee to take Keane on loan in December and agreed to pay Inter the remaining £11m over the next three years in instalments.

Leeds agreed an £11m fee with Liverpool for forward Robbie Fowler on 28 November 2001 and completed the transfer with a five-year deal on 30 November 2001.

Danny Pugh moved to Leeds on a free transfer from Manchester United on 27 May 2004 as part of a swap deal in 2002 that saw Alan Smith move in the opposite direction
for a £7m transfer fee.


Leeds completed the signing of David Livermore from Millwall in a £500,000 deal on 31 July 2006 but left to join Hull City just ten days later for a £500,000 fee. 

Leeds signed Ian Westlake from Ipswich Town on 4 August 2006 for a fee of £400,000 rising to £500,000 with add-ons as part of a swap deal which saw Dan Harding move
the other way.

Leeds completed the loan signing of Matt Heath from Coventry City on 9 November 2006. The loan spell ended on 1 January 2007 and the player returned to Coventry before
securing a free transfer back to Leeds on 2 January 2007 on a permanent deal until the end of the season. Heath's contract expired in June 2007 and was re-signed by the club
on 7 August 2007 on a free transfer.

Leeds signed Ryan Hall on loan on 18 October 2012 with a view to a permanent move in the January transfer window. Leeds completed the permanent signing on 27 December 2012
in a £150,000 deal.


Leeds signed Steve Morison from Norwich City on 31 January 2013 as part of an exchange deal that saw Luciano Becchio head the other way with Leeds receiving a £200,000 fee
as part of the deal.

Leeds signed Cameron Stewart on an emergency 93-day loan on 9 Jan 2014 and agreed a permanent deal to sign the player from Hull City when his contract expired in June 2014. Leeds decided to withdraw their permanent offer after the Football League spotted issues with the paperwork and refused to sign a new contract. Stewart joined Ipswich Town instead
in July 2014 and decided to sue Leeds for around £750,000 in compensation over the difference in wages.


Leeds attempted to sign a loan deal for Andrea Tabanelli from Cagliari on Deadline Day in January 2014, but the Football League refused to sanction the move because it did not
comply with regulations. This transfer has not been included in the records.


​Leeds completed the signing of defender Liam Cooper from Chesterfield on 13 August 2014 in a £600,000 deal plus add-ons.

Leeds have never officially recognised the Deadline Day signing of Amadou Haidara in August 2016 despite having made several appearances for the Leeds U23s. The Football Association officially confirmed his contract at Leeds was mutually terminated in February 2016, so his transfer is included in the records.

Leeds completed the permanent signing of Pablo Hernandez on 9 January 2017 from Al-Arabi following an initial six month loan deal. BBC Sport reported both clubs had agreed an undisclosed fee to sign the player until the end of the 2016/17 season.

Leeds appointed Victor Orta as the club’s director of football on 30 May 2017 and he has since been responsible for restructuring the club’s scouting network and identifying player signings and head coaches. 


Patrick Bamford joined Leeds from Middlesbrough on 31 July 2018 for an initial fee of £7m fee rising to £10m with add-ons.

Jean-Kevin Augustin joined Leeds on loan on 27 January 2020 until the end of the season with the club having the option to sign him permanently in a £17.7m deal. Leeds had the obligation to complete a permanent transfer due to a clause on the club triggering a promotion clause at the end of the 2019/20 season. However, Leeds claimed extenuating circumstances surrounding the COVID-19 pandemic which rendered the deal redundant as Leeds were not promoted by June 30 as the club still had six fixtures left to play. Augustin's loan period ended and he was released by the club. Leipzig argue that under the "spirit of the rules", the transfer should have taken place, as football contracts specify 30 June as the "end of a season". FIFA confirmed on 8 December 2020 that Leipzig had filed a claim against Leeds over the cancelled transfer. On 8 June 2021, a FIFA court sided with Leipzig and against Leeds. A ruling at the The Court of Arbitration for Sport decided Leeds lost their case and ordered Leeds to pay £18m (£17.7m + 300,000 in interest) to Leipzig on Nov 4th 2022. Leeds lodged an appeal over the CAS ruling and agreed a settlement of £15.5m with RB Leipzig. On 10 April 2023, FIFA's Dispute Resolution Chamber ruled that Leeds had been ordered to pay their former player Jean-Kevin Augustin £24.5m after being found to have breached his contract. 


Leeds completed the signing of Joe Gelhardt from Wigan Athletic on 10 August 2020 for an initial £1m fee plus add-ons.

Cody Drameh joined Leeds from Fulham on 13 August 2020 for an initial fee of £300,000 rising to £1m with add-ons.

Leeds completed the signing of Sam Greenwood from Arsenal on 28 August 2020 in a £1.5m deal plus add-ons which could rise to £3m.

Leeds agreed a deal with Valencia on 25 August 2020 and completed the club-record signing of Rodrigo on 29 August 2020 for an initial £27m fee plus add-ons.

Leeds agreed a deal with SC Freiburg on 25 August 2020 and completed the signing of Robin Koch on 29 August 2020 in a £13m deal including add-ons.

Leeds agreed an £18m deal to sign Michael Cuisance from Bayern Munich on 1 October 2020 but the club later reported the player had failed his medical and that the move had collapsed.

Leeds completed the signing of Raphinha from Rennes in a £17m deal plus add-ons on 5 October 2020.

 
Leeds signed Amari Miller from Birmingham City on 28 June 2021 for an initial £200,000 fee rising to £1.5m with add-ons.

Leeds completed the signing of winger Daniel James from Manchester United on 31 August 2021 in a £25m deal plus add-ons.

Leeds completed the signing on Brenden Aaronsen from Red Bull Salzburg on 26 May 2022 for a fee of £22.2m. The fee was reported by Phil Hay from The Athletic on 6 June 2022: "Although a fee was not disclosed by Leeds, The Athletic understands the West Yorkshire club will pay a fee in the region of $28 million (£22.2 million)."

Leeds completed the signing of Rasmus Kristensen from Red Bull Salzburg on 8 June 2022 for a fee of £10m as reported by The Athletic.

Leeds completed the signing of midfielder Marc Roca from Bayern Munich on 17 June 2022 for a £10m fee as reported by Sky Sports and The Athletic.

Leeds completed the signing of 18-year-old midfielder Darko Gyabi from Manchester City on 4 July 2022 for a fee of £5m.

Leeds completed the signing of 23-year-old USA international Tyler Adams from Feyenoord on 6 July 2022 for a deal worth in the region of £20m.

Leeds completed the signing of Luis Sinisterra from Feyenoord on 7 July 2022 for a fee of €25m (£21.1m) including add-ons as reported by The Athletic.

Leeds completed the signing of 18-year-old forward Wilfried Gnonto from FC Zürich for a €4.5m plus add ons on 1 September 2022 and included a future sell-on clause. 

Leeds released a statement on 5 December 2022 confirming the club had reached an agreement with RB Leipzig for Jean-Kévin Augustin which brought a conclusion to the saga: "Leeds United and RB Leipzig are pleased to announce that they have reached an amicable resolution of the dispute between the clubs, further details of which are confidential to the parties."

Leeds completed the signing of Austria defender Max Wober from Red Bull Salzburg on 3 January 2023 for a fee in the region of £11m as reported by Sky Sports.

Leeds completed the signing of 20-year-old forward Georginio Rutter from TSG 1899 Hoffenheim on 14 January 2023 for a club record fee of £28m rising to £35.5m.

Leeds completed the loan signing of USA international Weston McKennie until the end of the 2022/23 season on 30 January 2023 in a deal with included the option to buy the player for a £30m fee at the end of this season providing the club avoided relegation.

Leeds completed the signing of 18-year-old centre-back Diogo Monteiro from Servette on 31 January 2023 for a fee of £1m.

Leeds completed the signing of 22-year-old Wales international Ethan Ampadu from Chelsea on 19 July 2023 for an intial fee of 7m rising to £10m with add-ons.

Leeds completed the signing of 32-year-old goalkeeper Karl Darlow from Newcastle United on 29 July 2023 for a fee of £400k.

Leeds completed the free transfer of 29-year-old defender Sam Byram who signed a one-year deal with the club on 5 August 2023.

Leeds completed the signing of 25-year-old Wales defender Joe Rodon on a season-long loan deal from Tottenham Hotspur on 10 August 2023.

Leeds completed the signing of 24-year-old forward Joël Piroe from Swansea City on 24 August 2023 for an inital fee of £10.5m rising to £16m (fees quoted from The Athletic).

Leeds completed the signing of 23-year-old defender Djed Spence from Tottenham Hotspur on a season-long loan that included a £1m loan fee on August 30 2023.

Leeds completed the £5m signing of 23-year-old midfielder Ilia Gruev from Werder Bremen on a four-year deal on August 31 2023. The fee reportedly included future add-ons.

Leeds completed the £5m signing of 27-year-old midfielder Glen Kamara from Rangers on a four-year deal on August 31 2023.

Leeds completed the Deadline Day signing of 23-year-old winger Jaidon Anthony on a season-long loan deal from Bournemouth which saw Luis Sinisterra move the other way. The season-long loan deal for Luis Sinisterra included a loan fee along with an option to buy the player if Leeds fail to win promotion in 2023/24. The purchase option was confirmed by Bournemouth in the official player signing announcement article. There was no purchase option for Leeds and Anthony.

Leeds completed the Deadline Day signing of 28-year-old Wales international full-back Connor Roberts from Burnley on loan until the end of the season.

Leeds' homegrown academy star 18-year-old Archie Gray was sold to Tottenham Hotspur in an overall deal valued at £40m, which also saw Wales centre-back Joe Rodon return to Elland Road after a successful season-long loan spell in a permanent move for a £10m fee on July 2nd 2024.

The club completed the signing of 23-year-old full-back Jayden Bogle in a £5m deal from Sheffield United on July 20th 2024.

Leeds completed the signing of 23-year-old winger Largie Ramazani for an £10m fee from Spanish La Liga side UD Almería on August 22nd 2024.

Leeds completed the signing of 25-year-old Tottenham winger Manor Solomon on a season-long loan from Tottenham Hotspur on August 27th 2024.


 

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