Skip to content
Insporta Book
en
EnglishРусскийDeutschEspañolEestiSuomiItalianoFrançaisPolski日本語한국어中文
FootballCricketFutsalTriathlonTennisGolfFigure SkatingBasketballMethodologyWhy it worksTake a test

Football · Level 7: Upper-Advanced · Sub-level 7.80

Youth Development & Academies

10 tests · 100 facts · updated 12 October 2026 · markdown

How players are made: England's academy system, La Masia, Ajax, national centres, homegrown rules, the relative age effect, loans, scholarships, academy-built champions and the long drop-off to the first team.

Each test below is ten questions on Insporta. The list under a test is what the questions check: one fact per question, with the source it was written from. Read it before the test, or come back from a wrong answer.

Test 1The EPPP and academy categoriesTake a test

  1. The EPPP, agreed in 2011, replaced the old academy system from the 2012-13 season.

    Source: Premier League Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) documents · recall

  2. Compensation moved to a set scale, which smaller clubs said let the biggest academies recruit their best boys cheaply.

    Source: Premier League Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) documents · applied

  3. The Belgian company assesses staff, facilities and processes, and the results decide each academy's category.

    Source: Premier League Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) documents · recall

  4. Categories rest on what the academy provides, not on how the first team is doing.

    Source: Premier League Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) documents · applied

  5. Staff, facilities and coaching hours for the top categories are expensive, and few graduates reach the first team.

    Source: Premier League Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) documents · applied

  6. The plan set out to raise the quality and number of players coming through English academies.

    Source: Premier League Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) documents · applied

  7. The top category brings the most contact time, specialist staff and funding, which shows in results.

    Source: Premier League Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) documents · applied

  8. Foundation runs up to under-11, Youth Development from under-12 to under-16, and Professional Development from under-17 to under-21.

    Source: Premier League Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) documents · recall

  9. The audit comes first, and money from the league depends on the category granted.

    Source: Premier League Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) documents · applied

  10. Category One academies get the most league funding and must provide the most coaching hours and staff.

    Source: Premier League Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) documents · recall

Test 2La MasiaTake a test

  1. The new residence opened at the Ciutat Esportiva Joan Gamper, next to the first team's training ground.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  2. Director Carles Rexach signed the napkin in a restaurant to show the family the club was serious.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  3. Fàbregas joined Arsenal and Piqué Manchester United at 16 and 17, and both came back to win trophies with Barça.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  4. Unlike many team-mates, Pedri did not come through La Masia; he was signed from Las Palmas at 17.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  5. Messi had a hormone deficiency that his family could not afford to treat; the club took on the cost.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  6. A shared model means a player promoted at 18 already knows the positions and patterns the first team uses.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · applied

  7. Valdés came through the academy and kept goal in all three finals before leaving in 2014.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  8. The napkin came in 2000, his debut in 2004, his first final goal in 2009, and he left in 2021.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  9. Montoya's arrival completed an eleven made up entirely of La Masia products, a first for the club.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  10. Tito Vilanova's side finished the match with eleven academy graduates on the pitch at once.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

Test 3Ajax and De ToekomstTake a test

  1. The name sums up the club's long reliance on its own young players.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  2. De Ligt became Ajax's youngest captain and joined Juventus that summer.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  3. Transfer income from academy graduates funds the club and the next generation.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · applied

  4. Cruyff argued the academy had lost its way; ex-players such as Bergkamp and Jonk took over the youth set-up.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  5. Decision-making and understanding are prized because they separate players when physical gaps close.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · applied

  6. A graduate stepping up already knows the positions and movements expected of him.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · applied

  7. The Eredivisie cannot match English, Spanish or Italian wages, so Ajax sells at the peak of value.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · applied

  8. Cruyff debuted in 1964, Van Basten in 1982, Seedorf in 1992 and De Ligt in 2016.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  9. The acronym lists the four qualities Ajax scouts look for in a young player.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  10. Technique, Insight, Personality and Speed: character is judged alongside ability.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

Test 4Clairefontaine and national centresTake a test

  1. The Institut National du Football became the model for national academies across Europe.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  2. It takes promising boys from the Paris region for two years before they join club academies.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  3. Mbappé spent two years there before joining Monaco's academy.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  4. The FA's centre in Burton upon Trent hosts all England teams and much of its coach education.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  5. Compulsory academies and hundreds of regional talent bases were at the heart of the German reform.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  6. Heated indoor halls and a high number of UEFA-licensed coaches for a small population were widely credited.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  7. The centre adds coaching at key ages; the professional pathway still runs through club academies.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · applied

  8. Clairefontaine opened in 1988, St George's Park in 2012 and the DFB-Campus in 2022.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  9. The 2014 winners were largely the first generation of the reformed system.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  10. Sablon's plan produced the generation of Hazard, De Bruyne and Lukaku.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

Test 5Homegrown rulesTake a test

  1. Nationality does not matter; what counts is where he was registered and trained before turning 21.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · recall

  2. Joining Arsenal at 16 meant he met the training rule, whatever his nationality.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · applied

  3. Of the eight, at least four must be trained by the club itself; the rest may come from other clubs in the same country.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · recall

  4. The EU exception to FIFA's rules on minors no longer applies to British clubs, so they must wait until 18.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · recall

  5. The rules push clubs to invest in training rather than buying a whole squad.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · applied

  6. A player signed at 16 from abroad counts as homegrown by 19, which is not what many supporters imagine.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · applied

  7. The squad can still hold 17 non-homegrown players, but the remaining places can only go to homegrown players.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · recall

  8. Three seasons of registration before 21 is all it takes, whatever his nationality.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · applied

  9. UEFA's rule began in 2006-07, the Premier League's in 2010-11, and the Brexit change in 2021.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · recall

  10. Up to 17 places may go to non-homegrown players; the other eight need homegrown players or stay empty.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · recall

Test 6The relative age effectTake a test

  1. Boys born just after the cut-off are the oldest in their age group, and often the most physically developed.

    Source: Relative age effect research (Helsen et al. 2005; later reviews) · recall

  2. The pattern appeared in almost every country and youth age group studied.

    Source: Relative age effect research (Helsen et al. 2005; later reviews) · recall

  3. Players of similar biological maturity play together for some matches, so early developers do not dominate.

    Source: Relative age effect research (Helsen et al. 2005; later reviews) · applied

  4. Some studies find relatively young players who survive selection outperform later; others do not, so it remains debated.

    Source: Relative age effect research (Helsen et al. 2005; later reviews) · applied

  5. An 11-month head start matters hugely at 12 and very little at 25.

    Source: Relative age effect research (Helsen et al. 2005; later reviews) · applied

  6. Selecting on present size rather than future ability loses players who would have caught up.

    Source: Relative age effect research (Helsen et al. 2005; later reviews) · applied

  7. Some scouts note birth quarters or compare players with others of the same age in months.

    Source: Relative age effect research (Helsen et al. 2005; later reviews) · applied

  8. With a 1 September cut-off, the pattern runs down from the autumn to the summer-born, the youngest in the year.

    Source: Relative age effect research (Helsen et al. 2005; later reviews) · applied

  9. The bands are temporary; they give early and late developers a different kind of challenge.

    Source: Relative age effect research (Helsen et al. 2005; later reviews) · applied

  10. Players born early in the selection year are over-represented because they are older and often bigger.

    Source: Relative age effect research (Helsen et al. 2005; later reviews) · applied

Test 7The loan pathwayTake a test

  1. The limit targets clubs stockpiling players; players aged 21 or under and players trained at the club can still be loaned freely.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · recall

  2. At times Chelsea had around 40 players on loan, a model that FIFA's later limits were designed to curb.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  3. He went to Leyton Orient, Millwall, Norwich and Leicester before breaking through at Spurs in 2014.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  4. Recall clauses, often usable in January, protect the parent club if the loan is not working.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · applied

  5. Such deals spread the cost of a transfer and become permanent once agreed targets are reached.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · applied

  6. The limit stops clubs filling their sides with borrowed players from above.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · recall

  7. A loan is only as good as the playing time; a spell on the bench can set a player back.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · applied

  8. Kane went to Orient in 2011, Millwall in 2012, Norwich for 2012-13 and Leicester later that season.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  9. The best loans are planned around playing time and followed closely by the parent club.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · applied

  10. The cap started at eight in 2022-23, fell to seven, and settled at six from 2024-25.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · recall

Test 8Scholarships and the first contractTake a test

  1. The two-year scholarship combines full-time football with education after the player leaves school.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · recall

  2. The limit protects minors from long commitments before they are adults.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · recall

  3. Scholars can be offered professional terms from their 17th birthday.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · recall

  4. The rule protects minors, with narrow exceptions such as a family moving for reasons unconnected to football.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · recall

  5. If the family moved for work or other non-football reasons, the transfer may be allowed.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · recall

  6. The great majority are released, so qualifications give them a future outside football.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · applied

  7. Cases of children taken abroad on false promises led FIFA to restrict international moves of minors.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · applied

  8. Each step is a selection point, and most players leave the pathway before the last one.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · applied

  9. Scholarships start at 16, professional contracts at 17, and contracts longer than three years only from 18.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · applied

  10. FIFA found Barcelona had breached the rules on international transfers of minors; the ban covered two windows.

    Source: Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP) · recall

Test 9Academy graduates who won the biggest trophiesTake a test

  1. Giggs, Beckham, Butt and Gary Neville were in the side; Scholes and Phil Neville followed close behind.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  2. Butragueño, Míchel, Sanchís, Martín Vázquez and Pardeza came through together and Madrid won La Liga from 1986 to 1990.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  3. Athletic's policy makes its academy, Lezama, the only real source of players.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  4. Lahm joined Bayern as a boy and led the team to the league, cup and Champions League in 2012-13.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  5. Puyol came through La Masia and captained the side in both finals.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  6. United lost that day but won the double that season with the Class of '92 at its heart.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  7. Money makes buying the quicker route to trophies, so a champion side full of graduates stands out.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · applied

  8. Celtic won in 1967, the Class of '92 in 1992, Puyol's second Champions League in 2009 and Bayern's treble in 2013.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  9. The Youth Cup came in 1992, Hansen's remark and the double in 1995-96, and the treble in 1999.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  10. The Lisbon Lions, built almost entirely from local players, beat Inter 2-1 in the final.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

Test 10From youth football to the first team: the drop-offTake a test

  1. Estimates vary, but all agree that only a very small fraction reach the top flight.

    Source: Premier League Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) documents · applied

  2. Released at 16, he rebuilt his career in non-league football before joining Leicester in 2012.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  3. A first team has a handful of places, often filled by expensive signings the club wants to play.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · applied

  4. Being released at 18 can hit a young player's mental health and finances; support helps him find a new path.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · applied

  5. Years of good coaching make them attractive to clubs further down the pyramid or overseas.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · applied

  6. Tracking how many move from scholar to professional, and on to the first team, shows where players fall away.

    Source: Premier League Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) documents · applied

  7. Smaller, later-maturing boys are often released before they catch up, which is why some reach the top by other routes.

    Source: Relative age effect research (Helsen et al. 2005; later reviews) · applied

  8. He played for Stocksbridge until 2010, then Halifax, Fleetwood, and joined Leicester in 2012.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

  9. Each stage keeps only a fraction of the one before, which is the academy drop-off in numbers.

    Source: Premier League Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) documents · applied

  10. Wright joined Crystal Palace at 21 and went on to become Arsenal's record scorer at the time.

    Source: Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements) · recall

Sources

IFAB Laws of the Game / FIFA & UEFA regulations and technical reports / Opta & StatsBomb definitions / coaching literature / peer-reviewed research

  • Club histories and match reports (BBC Sport, UEFA, club statements)51
  • Competition and FIFA regulations (Premier League Handbook, UEFA, FIFA RSTP)25
  • Premier League Elite Player Performance Plan (EPPP) documents13
  • Relative age effect research (Helsen et al. 2005; later reviews)11