Manufacturing Soccer Players

       Youth academies have become a major part of European soccer. Every famous club has their own academy. These academies manufacture talent, and they are not going to deny it. Arsenal's academy even proclaims that the "Academy production line looks set to continue and produce players to grace the Emirates Stadium for many years to come." The production line has been smoothly running; Jack Wilshere, currently one of the most central players to the Arsenal first team, has been with the club since he was nine years old.
       The Bleacher Report ranks Arsenal's academy as one of the top eight youth academies, along with academies from West Ham, Gremio, El Semillero, Sporting CP, Manchester United, Ajax, and Barcelona. Ajax football club is the founding facilitator of youth academies, where the Dutch idea of "Total Football" was originally taught. Barcelona has renowned pride for filling its team with homegrown players. Members of this group of elite academies might have one of the largest advantages in the business of the modern soccer transfer market.
       Clubs sell alums and reap the profits, or raise them and establish them in their first team squads. The football transfer market is expensive, and youth academies provide an economic alternative. With record-breaking transfer fees in recent years, youth academies definitely have a place in international soccer.

(graph of record English transefer fees from BBC News, February 2011)

 

       Most clubs eventually sell their youth players when they become stars. When famous clubs with deeper pockets come seeking new players, it can be difficult to hold on to budding stars. Arsenal still laments the loss of players such as Ashley Cole, Gael Clichy, and Alex Song. But in the unique case of clubs like Barcelona, viewers can see the true power of a youth academy. Barcelona regularly fields a majority of players that are alums from their youth academy. These players have been trained in the Barca style, and they have learned to play together over many years. This method has built argueably one of the best soccer teams, and arguebly the best player, of all time.

(depiction of Barcelona's top youth players from the Daily Mail, April 2010)

       Clubs have turned youth development into personal factories for success. While this turns youth soccer into a competitive job market, it gives opportunities to the most gifted youngsters. At the Ajax Youth Academy, parents only pay the annual insurance fee of twelve euro (Sokolove). The clubs pay for everything else: coaches, facilities, uniforms, travel fees, educational tutoring and much more. They do this for the possible future: the development of one of the next stars. They can either sell their players for millions of euro in transfer fees, or keep them as a first class acquisition. Either way, youth academies have an important role in the current professional soccer market.