Why this summer transfer window is so different for Portsmouth and their Championship rivals

It would be safe to say last summer was a hectic one for John Mousinho and Portsmouth as they prepared to make their long-awaited return to the Championship.

Still basking in the glow of the League One title triumph that was secured just weeks earlier, Mousinho wasted little time in adding to his squad ahead of the return to the second tier as the likes of Nicolas Schmid, Josh Murphy, Andre Dozzell and Matt Ritchie were all secured. There were a whole host of outgoings too with Joe Rafferty, Sean Raggett, Matt Macey and Lee Evans all heading for pastures new after helping end Pompey’s 12-year absence from English football’s second tier.

With their Championship status secured after a long and challenging season at Fratton Park, all eyes are now on the summer and Mousinho has already started his close-season work by confirming his retained list. However, there are likely to be several additions to his ranks - and there will be some additional time given to the Pompey boss and his rivals across the Championship after FIFA made an announcement over a major change to this summer’s transfer window.

When does the 2025 summer transfer window open?

This year’s summer transfer window is somewhat different to previous years as it has been broken into two separate windows. The first window will open for business on Sunday, June 1 and will remain open until Tuesday, June 10. The second part of the summer transfer window will open again on Monday, June 16 until Deadline Day on Monday, September 1. This summer's two transfer windows will close four hours earlier at 7pm, rather than the traditional 11pm deadline, so there will be no need for the late night scramble to conclude those last-minute deals.

Why is there an additional summer transfer window this year?

An EFL statement released last week explained just why clubs across the Premier League, Championship, League One and League Two will have an additional transfer window. It read: “Due to an additional FIFA Club World Cup Registration Period introduced ahead of the start of the FIFA Club World Cup, the EFL and its Clubs have agreed that the summer transfer window shall operate for an additional ten-day period from Sunday 1 June 2025 to 19:00 on Tuesday 10 June 2025. This is due to the transfer window being unable to exceed a total of 89 days.

“The FIFA regulation on this matter permits the member associations of Clubs playing in the FIFA Club World Cup to establish this exceptional registration period, and there is therefore likely to be considerable transfer activity taking place across the world’s major leagues during this time. The EFL therefore believes that its Clubs should also have the opportunity to be active in the market at this time.”

When is the FIFA Club World Cup?

The inaugural FIFA Club World Cup will start on June 15, with the final taking place on July 13 and will be hosted by the United States. A total of 32 clubs will take part with the winners taking home a cool £97m in prize money from the game’s governing body.

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