Benfica’s academy is the best in the world, ahead of La Masia sports

The Portuguese club Benfica ranked first in the annual ranking of the best academies in the world, issued by the International Observatory for Football Studies (CIES).

Benfica’s academy outperformed its counterparts in major international clubs, led by “La Masia” affiliated with the Spanish club Barcelona, ​​as the classification monitored the actual influence of graduates of club academies in professional football.

Best academies as per @CIES_Football Training Index 📊
🥇 #SLBenfica 🇵🇹 (9⃣3⃣ players trained now in 49 top divisions, av. club level 0.81 & on av. 2,582′ last year)
🥈 #FCBarcelona 🇪🇸 (7⃣6⃣, 0.87, 2,773′)
🥉 #RiverPlate 🇦🇷 (9⃣7⃣, 0.81, 2,305′)#Ajax 🇳🇱 #BocaJrs 🇦🇷 #SportingCP 🇵🇹… pic.twitter.com/uhdZmIzUuE

— CIES Football Obs (@CIES_Football) October 22, 2025

The classification was based on players who spent at least 3 seasons between the ages of 15 and 21 in one club and was based on 3 main indicators:

• Number of active players in 49 leagues around the world.
• The level of competitiveness of the clubs in which they play.
• The number of minutes they played during the last year.

According to the classification, 93 players who are graduates of the Benfica Academy are currently active in 49 leagues around the world, with an average of 2,582 playing minutes played by the players in the past 12 months.

The Spanish newspaper “AS” said that this superiority reflects the strength and spread of Benfica’s formative model, which produced prominent stars such as Ruben Diaz and Bernardo Silva, current Manchester City players, Joao Felix (Al-Nassr of Saudi Arabia), Joao Neves and Gonzalo Ramos, duo of Paris Saint-Germain, and others who graduated from the club’s senior categories.

The “La Masia” Academy, which is considered a global reference in player training, came in second place with 76 players, with an average of 2,773 minutes played during the same period, while the Argentine River Plate Academy ranked third with 97 players, but with an average of 2,305 minutes played.

As for the Real Madrid Academy, it came behind Barcelona by a clear margin, as the Royal Club has 58 players among its graduates who are currently active in several leagues, with an average of 2.81 minutes played during the past year.

Despite remaining among the top 10 in the world, the difference in the number of players and international presence shows a relative decline in talent production compared to its Catalan competitor, according to AS.

The ranking also witnessed the dominance of Argentine clubs, as Argentina is the most represented country in the top 100 list with 15 clubs, followed by Brazil with 11 clubs, while Spain is classified among the elite with Barcelona and Real Madrid among the top ten academies in the world.

Below is the ranking of the 10 best academies in the world:

1. Benfica Academy (Portugal).
2. La Masia Academy Barcelona (Spain).
3. River Plate Academy (Argentina).
4. Ajax Academy Amsterdam (Netherlands).
5. Boca Juniors Academy (Argentina).
6. Sporting Lisbon Academy (Portugal).
7. Dinamo Zagreb Academy (Croatia).
8. Defensor Sporting Academy (Uruguay).
9. La Fabrica Real Madrid Academy (Spain).
10. Velez Sarsfield Academy (Argentina).