<i>La Fábrica</i> delivers again as Real Madrid bank €196m from academy talent | OneFootball

While Barcelona continue to rely on La Masia to produce first-team stars, Real Madrid's academy has become one of the most profitable talent factories in world football.

Under Florentino Pérez, Madrid's transfer strategy has long centred on signing established stars rather than promoting academy graduates. As a result, opportunities at the Santiago Bernabéu are limited for homegrown players. Even so, the club continue to make huge sums by developing young talent and selling them on.

With a month of the summer transfer window still remaining, Real Madrid have already generated around €196 million from academy products.

The latest departure came on Thursday when Gonzalo García completed a €40 million move to Fulham. Despite scoring eight goals in 39 appearances last season, the striker was deemed surplus to requirements. Fellow academy graduate César Palacios also joined the Premier League club in a deal worth €10 million after making just seven senior appearances.

Earlier in the summer, Real completed the permanent sale of Nico Paz to Como for €60 million. The Argentina international had made only eight first-team appearances before moving to Serie A in 2024 but has continued to increase his value in Italy.

Fran García also left the club after Marc Cucurella's arrival effectively pushed him down the pecking order. The left-back joined Real Betis for €4 million, while midfielder Mario Martín completed a €3.5 million move to Getafe.

Profit from future sales

However, Madrid's academy has generated even more through sell-on clauses.

The club routinely retain a significant percentage of future transfer fees when selling young players, a strategy that has paid off handsomely this summer.

Álvaro Rodríguez's €30 million move from Elche to Bournemouth earned Madrid €15 million thanks to a 50 per cent sell-on clause. The same arrangement also brought in a sizeable return when Mario Gila swapped Lazio for AC Milan.

Liverpool's €40 million signing of Víctor Muñoz added another €20 million to Madrid's accounts, despite the winger making only four first-team appearances before leaving.

Further income arrived through the sales of Álex Jiménez, Jacobo Ortega and Víctor Valdepeñas, taking the total generated from former academy players to almost €200 million.

It's a stark contrast to Barcelona, where academy graduates such as Lamine Yamal, Pau Cubarsí, Alejandro Balde, Gavi and Fermín López are central to the first team. Real Madrid may not offer many pathways into their senior side, but their academy continues to prove one of the most valuable assets in European football.