Fax machines were a staple of offices in the 1980s and 90s and transmitted scanned documents over telephone lines. The device became synonymous with the drama of football transfer deadline day as clubs used it to send paperwork, with deals sometimes hinging on last-minute faxes. Technical failures have affected transfers, most famously contributing to David de Gea's reported 2015 move collapse. Many clubs now send digital faxes or scanned documents via email, but administrative errors still block moves, as when Nottingham Forest's paperwork prevented Lewis O'Brien's 2023 loan. The summer transfer window closes in England at 19:00 BST and in Scotland at 23:00 BST on 1 September.
There is one piece of technology that is synonymous with drama of transfer deadline day - the modest fax machine. A staple of offices in the 1980s and 90s, the telecommunication device was used to send scanned documents over a telephone line to another machine. It was also the go-to method of transferring documents in the world of football, with transfers often hinging on files being sent just before the deadline.
Notoriously in 2015, David de Gea's move from Manchester United to Real Madrid reportedly collapsed due to technical issues with United's fax machine. Errors can still happen with clubs needing to send over documentation to the Premier League, or the English Football League, as well as the FA. In 2023, then-Nottingham Forest midfielder Lewis O'Brien's deadline day loan to Blackburn Rovers was blocked by the EFL because Forest failed to submit all of the required paperwork in time.
The summer transfer window closes in England on Monday, 1 September at 19:00 BST, and in Scotland at 23:00 BST on the same day. This article is the latest from BBC Sport's Ask Me Anything team. Ask Me Anything is a service dedicated to answering your questions. We want to reward your time by telling you things you do not know and reminding you of things you do.
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