Benfica leads Europe in youth development, rivals trail in elite ranking | OneFootball

Benfica is the only Portuguese club in the European top 20 that uses the most academy-trained players still in the squad in 2025/26. According to Sportingpedia data, based on Transfermarkt, the Eagles have nine players in these conditions, matching clubs such as Real Madrid and Feyenoord.

This season, under the guidance of José Mourinho, six youngsters were introduced: Daniel Banjaqui, José Neto, Tiago Freitas, Gonçalo Moreira, Rodrigo Rêgo and Anísio Cabral. A number that reinforces the clear commitment to youth development, although Ivan Lima also made his debut before leaving for Piast Gliwice in Poland.

In the European context, Benfica appears as an exception in a landscape dominated by Dutch clubs. The Eredivisie places seven teams in the top 20, with a total of 125 academy-trained players, while Spain comes right behind with 121. Portugal ranks only 7th, with 45 players, being the last among the major leagues.

However, when market value is analysed, the picture changes. Sporting is in 8th place with 143.5 million euros in academy-trained players, while Porto is 15th with 90.8 million. Among the individual standouts, Geovany Quenda leads for the Lions with 42 million, while Diogo Costa is worth 40 million for the Dragons. At the top globally is Lamine Yamal, Barcelona’s star, valued at 200 million euros, with La Masia reaching an impressive total of 610.5 million.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇵🇹 here.