Which teams have made the most money from selling players from the academy? Benfica is king, Real Madrid is doing well

Having a capable and quality academy is a big plus in today’s football. Either the offspring subsequently play for the A-team and you don’t have to spend a penny on them, or you sell them for big money elsewhere. Which teams are the best in this respect?

Bringing up your own players and then playing with them at the club is the ideal scenario. But it just doesn’t work that easily, you’re hardly going to win regularly with only academy youngsters. Still, a few will make it to the A-teams and then transfers will come for various reasons.

In smaller clubs the player moves to a better one, in big ones maybe he doesn’t get as much playing space and moves elsewhere. CIES Football Observatory has prepared a list of clubs that have made the most money from selling their own players since 2015. A player who has spent at least three years in a club’s youth is counted as an offspring.

1. Benfica Lisbon – €379 million

The absolute king when it comes to selling offspring. Raising your own players in the academy and then selling them off expensively, that’s what Benfica is the best in the world at. Since 2015, it has cashed in €379 million for its own players.

At the same time, the club’s philosophy is not at the expense of quality, quite the opposite. Benfica has won five league titles in the last eight years. In the current season, they are even in the quarter-finals of the Champions League.

The biggest contributor to the total is João Félix, who was bought by Atlético Madrid for €127 million. Other players sold include the Manchester City foursome Rubén Dias (€68m), Ederson (€40m), João Cancelo (€15m) and Bernardo Silva (€15m).

2. Real Madrid – €330 million

Unlike the other four teams in the rankings, Real Madrid is not a selling club that prides itself on selling offspring. It is the most successful team in football history and can spend huge sums on its reinforcements. But it is equally cashing in on its offspring.

There have been plenty of offspring who have made their way into the A-team, such as Iker Casillas, Raúl, Guti, Emílio Butragueño, and in more recent times, Dani Carvajal, Lucas Vázquez and Nacho. “La Fabrica,” as Los Blancos academy is nicknamed, is churning out a lot of talent, which the club then benefits from selling.

Álvaro Morata has brought the most money to the coffers, transferring twice. Firstly in 2014 for €20 million to Juventus, then he returned to the Santiago Bernabéu, Real sold him again in 2017, this time to Chelsea for €66 million, a sum that with bonuses went up to €80 million.

Other offspring who have brought big money to the club include Achraf Hakimi (€43m), Sergio Reguilón (€30m), Marcos Llorente (€30m) and Jesé (€20m).

But La Fabrica has also produced many great footballers who have gone on to make their mark elsewhere, such as Juanfran (Atlético Madrid), Dani Parejo (Valencia, Villarreal), Saúl Ñíguez (Atlético, Chelsea), Santiago Cañizares (Valencia) and Juan Mata (Chelsea, Man. United).

3. AS Monaco – 285 million euros

Monaco is an expert at spotting talent and then selling it. It relies on youngsters all the time, with its biggest breakthrough coming in the 2016/17 season. Not only did Monaco win Ligue 1 ahead of PSG, but they also reached the semi-finals of the Champions League.

It was then that Kylian Mbappé in particular shone, who was subsequently bought out by PSG. The lightning-fast striker left for the French capital for a staggering 145 million euros. Monaco also made a lot of money from the sales of Yannick Carrasco and Abdou Diallo.

4. Ajax – 283 million euros

When you say bring up your own players and then play them in the A-team, most fans first think of Ajax Amsterdam. This philosophy has been in place at the club since time immemorial, and the club’s academy churns out big talents to the A-team on a regular basis.

Frenkie de Jong has brought the most money into the coffers in history, with Barcelona paying €86 million for him. The youngest captain in the history of the A-team, Matthijs de Ligt, went to Juventus for €85.5 million. Other big sales include Donny van de Beek or Justin Kluivert.

Going through history, we find a lot of football icons in the Ajax academy. Johan Cruijff, Marco van Basten, Frank de Boer, Frank Riijkard, Dennis Bergkamp, Edgar Davids, Patrick Kluivert, Edwin van der Saar, Clarence Seedorf, Wesley Sneijder or Rafael van der Vaart.

5. Olympique Lyon – €270 million

Lyon is one of the most successful clubs in France, but also one of the clubs with the best academies. Since its foundation, Lyon has prioritized giving a chance to its own youngsters, which makes it a very prestigious address for young talents.

Les Gones have sent out several talents such as Alexandre Lacazette, Samuel Umtiti, Nabil Fekir and Anthony Martial.

Lacazette has brought the most joy to the club. Between 2010-2017, he played 275 games for the club and scored 129 goals. Subsequently, he still brought 53 million euros to the club’s coffers when he transferred to Arsenal.

Source: CIES Football Observatory