Real Madrid have generated €200 million+ from sales of academy players since 2010 | OneFootball

Real Madrid have often been associated with being big hitters in the transfer market, alluring the very best players of the world.

But the intense competition of the first team and the high standards of the club often overshadow its renowned academy, La Fabrica.

The academy has a long history of developing talented players who often become valuable assets for the first team or are sold to other clubs, generating significant revenue.

A decade of profitable transfers

Since the 2010-11 season, Real Madrid has strategically leveraged their academy talent pipeline to boost their financial performance, particularly by selling players who have yet to establish themselves in the first team.

According to Transfermarkt, Real Madrid have sold 43 youth players, generating €200 million in revenue under specific criteria: the player must not have played more than 20 matches with the first team.

It is worth mentioning that this approach excludes notable sales like those of Alvaro Morata and Marcos Llorente, as they notched more first-team appearances.

Real Madrid sold Hakimi to Inter Milan for €43 million. (Photo by Richard Heathcote/Getty Images)

The biggest such transfer came when Real Madrid sold Achraf Hakimi to Inter Milan for a fee of around €43 million. Raul de Tomas’ sale to Benfica for €20 million ranks second while Oscar Rodriguez’s €13.5 million move to Sevilla stands third.

In the last season alone, Real Madrid sold four players under this approach and improved their coffers.

Antonio Blanco joined Alaves, Sergio Arribas took his talents to Almeria, Carlos Dotor was offloaded to Celta, Vigo and finally, Oscar Aranda was sold to Famalicão.

These transactions brought in €13.3 million, illustrating the club’s effective use of its youth development system to enhance financial stability while maintaining a focus on nurturing future stars.

More recently, Real Madrid parted ways with Rafa Marin who has signed for Napoli for a fee reported to be worth around €12 million. Other players like Marvin Park and Alex Jimenez have also left some cash in the coffers this summer.

While the Merengues are more stringent in awarding regular playing time to their youngsters, their ability to make tough decisions has helped them become the most valuable club in the world.

*Transfer fee data from Transfermarkt.com