The 446th CIES Football Observatory Weekly Post presents the 100 clubs with the most profitable academies in the world in terms of revenues generated over the last ten years by the transfer of players who spent at least three seasons there between the ages of 15 and 21*.

Portuguese side SL Benfica are clearly in the lead with €516 million, two thirds of which has been collected in the last five years.

AFC Ajax (€376 million) and Olympique Lyonnais (€370 million) complete the podium.

As in the case of Benfica, the majority of Ajax’s revenues from the transfer of players from its academy has been generated over the last five years (66%). Despite transfer price inflation, this percentage is much lower for Olympique Lyonnais (50%).

Also in the top ten are three English clubs (Chelsea, Tottenham and Manchester City), a second Portuguese team (Sporting CP), as well as Real Madrid (fourth), AS Monaco (sixth, largely thanks to the revenues from Kylian Mbappé’s transfer to Paris St-Germain) and Italy’s Atalanta (tenth).

Outside Europe, the clubs with the most profitable academies are Brazil’s Flamengo (thirteenth) and Argentina’s River Plate (fourteenth).

* Including add-ons regardless of their actual receipt.

>>> Find out the top 100

About the CIES Football Observatory

The CIES Football Observatory is a research group created in 2005 within the Swiss-based Centre International d’Étude du Sport (CIES). It specialises in the statistical analysis of football, in particular in the areas of demographics, transfer values and performance.

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About the CIES

The International Centre for Sports Studies (CIES) is an independent study centre located in Neuchâtel, Switzerland. It was created in 1995 as a joint venture between the Fédération Internationale de Football Association (FIFA), the University of Neuchâtel, the City and State of Neuchatel.

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