E-Paper
The art of catching them young
As European clubs prepare for financial fair play to kick in, HT takes a look at academy set-ups in various countries.
As European clubs prepare for financial fair play to kick in, HT takes a look at academy set-ups in various countries.
*With UEFA introducing a cap on the amount a club can spend on players under their financial fair play policy, most European clubs will have to rely on home-grown players in the future.
*When it comes to producing home-grown players, four-time European champions Ajax lead the way, followed by Partizan Belgrade, Hajduk Split and Barcelona with Sporting Lisbon and MTK Budapest level in fifth place.
*As part of the licensing programme in Germany for the 2011-12 season, the clubs in the top two tiers pumped more than 100 million euros (Rs. 695.27 crore) into their academies, taking the overall tally since 2001 to more than 713 million euros (Rs. 4957.3 crore) of direct youth investment.
