Arsenal surpass Manchester City in record transfer fee of $132.8m and sign West Ham’s Declan Rice

Arsenal have agreed to pay a transfer fee of £105million to acquire the rights to Declan Rice from West Ham United, The Athletic report. According to Wednesday’s exchange rate, that’s about $132.8 million.

The deal sets a new record for the transfer of an English player to the Premier League and breaks Manchester City’s £100m levy in 2022 for taking over Jack Grealish.

The details of the payment terms are still being worked out by both sides, but according to the report, the agreement is in principle agreed. The agreement ends a bidding war for the 24-year-old midfielder that involved three-time reigning champions Manchester City.

According to the report, Arsenal initially offered £90million, a price matched by Manchester City. Both offers were rejected by West Ham. Arsenal responded by raising their offer to an entry fee of £100m plus £5m in surcharges on Tuesday, ultimately outbidding Manchester City to secure their top target.

Rice has played his entire career as a senior professional for West Ham, making 245 appearances since joining the team in 2017. He started his international career with the Republic of Ireland but made a one-off move to England in 2019 and continued to play for his 2022 World Cup team there.

His upcoming move to Arsenal has the potential to offset the shift in power at the top of the Premier League. Manchester City edged out runners-up Arsenal to win the Premier League in May.