Declan Rice became the most expensive British player in history on Saturday as Arsenal signed the England midfielder from West Ham for a reported £105mn ($137.5mn, 122.4m euros). Rice’s fee surpassed the previous record £100mn that Manchester City paid Aston Villa for Jack Grealish in 2021 as Arsenal continue their spending spree in a bid to challenge for the Premier League title next season. The sum is just below the British record transfer fee Chelsea paid Benfica in January to bring Enzo Fernandez to Stamford Bridge for £106.8mn. Neither club officially announced the fee, but West Ham said they would receive a record transfer fee between two British clubs for Rice, 24. Rice said in a farewell letter to West Ham supporters his desire to play at the “very highest level” lay behind his decision to join Arsenal. His switch to the Emirates Stadium on a five-year contract comes after he lifted West Ham’s first major trophy since 1980 in the Europa Conference League final against Fiorentina. Having moved across London, Rice will now be competing for the Champions League rather than Europe’s third tier trophy. “In football, amazing opportunities arise. Big clubs, like Arsenal, have come for me and it’s really hard to turn down,” Rice told Arsenal’s website.