Yes, another “trying to understand soccer” thread by an American:). I understand that there are no farm systems in soccer, and colleges are almost never used as talent pools the way they are in American pro sports. Then how do they recruit players? Just buy them from lesser teams, like baseball did before farm systems existed? Develop them “in house”? For that matter, I’ve heard of players being loaned from one team to another? What is the point of that, and how do teams decide which team they loan from?
Well, most pro teams have youth academies where kids as young as 8 are coached and trained.
Each professional club has a dedicated youth set-up, which starts recruiting players aged about 7 or sometimes even younger. Players are either invited by the clubs to join these teams (having displayed talent playing for their youth team) or going for tryouts. Clubs will have youth scouts to keep an eye out for talented young players in the various children’s leagues. The younger teams are mainly to nurture and develop talent and the players are not obligated in any way to the club. In the teenage years things become a bit more serious (aged 13 or 14?) and players start to become obligated to clubs (e.g. can’t play for other youth teams).
About 16 players will sign their first contracts with a club, these will be development contracts. Exceptionally talented players,who are also mentally and physically prepared may even (though very rarely) get a few games with the first team at this age. Wayne Rooney for example made his Premiership debut aged 16. However most players aged 16/17 will enter the U-18 team and if they show do well enough will be offered their first full professional contract aged about 18. From then (again unless they are exceptionally talented) they will go into the reserve team and if they do well enough will start getting games with the first team.
Parallel to the clubs’ own development programs, there are also youth clubs and academies not directly affiliated with professional clubs from which the clubs will also occasionally sign players.
Loans are usually used for young players who are already good enough to get professional-level experience, but either at a lower level than their club or at the same level but with a different team (a player who may be ready to play Premiership football may not be ready to break into the Man Utd first team for example). Loans are also used to rehabilitated injured players, when a team doesn’t want a player but can’t sell him or sometimes as try-before-you-buy deals.
NY Times Magazine article from a few years ago did a good job describing the youth academy of the Dutch team Ajax.
Just to add to AF’s excellent explanation, many of the really big clubs, such as Barça, Madrid and ManU, also have overseas academies – Madrid has then in all continents – and although as in farm or University systems, the great majority of players picked will not end up making the first teams of those giants, many, many of those kids will end up playing football and make a good living from doing so at smaller/lesser level clubs/categories. Just the fact that you get scouted and picked to train at these academies is a tremendous opportunity for a youngster trying to break into professional footy. If picked, they are a live-in residencies that include everything a young player would need – including an excellent education.
To give you an idea of just how professional and fully equipped these training centers are, here are links to the three mentioned above:
Real Madrid’s nicknamed “La Fabrica”: Real Madrid City
ManU training grounds: Trafford Training Centre
Barcelona’s La Masia: La Masia
That’s just an example, likely using the three best from the professional teams – though many would argue that Ajax also has one of the best youth systems around (which they do) and it includes footy hotbed, Surinam. If you bother to see a sampling of the number of high quality (including Golden Boot/FIFA player of the year) footballers these academies have produced, you’d be amazed. Just Goggle them, Wiki has a sampling of some of the most famous from each – though by no means exahustive.
And the MLS in the US is starting to follow this example. My son plays for one of the Developmental Academy teams. I doubt seriously he will ever see a minute on a professional team, but it is great exposure for the collegiate level plus they get some cool perks like occasionally travelling with the pro teams.
For those playing at home, the nicks mean “the Factory” and “the Farmhouse” (which it happens to be).
All MLS teams are going to have youth development academies in the next five years. Orlando City’s established development program is a big reason why the team will be offered an MLS franchise.