the.com/youth academy
where clubs grow their own instead of paying someone else's markup.
means a club's in-house system for training young players from childhood through the first team.
from formalized in the 20th century as clubs like ajax and barcelona realized raising talent beats renting it; ajax's youth setup became the blueprint everyone still copies.
la masiaproduced messi, xavi, iniesta from one campus.
ajax modelphilosophy taught before tactics, positions before results.
cost logiccheaper than transfer fees by tens of millions.
homegrown rulesleagues now mandate academy-trained squad quotas.