Inside Spain's youth academy: China bets on foreign skills

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A young man points over his shoulder to the Spain exhibition stand. What he is pointing at are jerseys from the twenty teams of the Spanish La Liga. The Jersey's were all part of the China International Import Expo (CIIE) held a few weeks ago.

The CIIE effects are still being felt, especially in the area of international football training. The Tianjin Football Association and the Spanish Football Academy signed their first sports agreement and it is expected to have a profound impact on Chinese football.

Jerseys from La Liga team presented in Spain exhibition stand of China International Import Expo in Shanghai, China attract people, November 9, 2018. /VCG Photo

According to the agreement, the Spanish Football Academy will send lecturers, accredited by the UEFA, to Tianjin as part of an effort to promote youth academies at the grassroots level in China. Additionally, a long-term cooperation deal with Valencia, Levante, and Villarreal football clubs has also been agreed so there will be continued adjustment and improvements made to the youth academy system.

As a milestone of China's reform and opening-up, CIIE embraced countries and regions to import their goods and service to China. This naturally leads Spain to seize the opportunity of exporting its world renowned skills in football training to develop China's footballing ambitions.

Established by the Royal Spanish Football Association as an official educational institution to promote football training, the Spanish Football Academy provides regular and comprehensive training courses for players and coaches. With a series of world-class youth academy names like La Masia (Barcelona) and La Fábrica (Real Madrid) contributing to Spain's reputation as a footballing powerhouse, the north China city Tianjin will use their skills to improve their own football youth academies.

Star-studded La Masia, technical La Fábrica

The famed Barcelona youth academy, also known as La Masia, holds more than 300 young players with the same dream, "getting to the first team", and has been considered as the best in the world since 2002. Three professional teams, 13 amateur teams, and four women's teams make up the Football Academy at FC Barcelona.

The 8-year-old Barcelona youth player Arnau Martinez (C) acknowledges the public with his teammates at the end of their match against Llongueras on one of the pitches at the Joan Camper training ground in Barcelona, Spain, May 15, 2011. /VCG Photo

In 2010, Spain lifted the World Cup with 9 of the 23-man squad passing through the La Masia academy. Right after this triumph, La Masia became the first youth academy to have trained all three finalists for the Ballon d'Or in a single year, with Andres Iniesta, Lionel Messi, and Xavi.

Different from Barcelona's style, Real Madrid shocked the world with its famous record-breaking transfer deals, what is less well known however is their training wing La Fábrica. Established in 2005 it claims to be "the greatest sports facility ever built by a football club" after a huge investment of 100 million euros.

In La Fábrica coaches focus more on individuals rather than creating one certain type of player, trying to identify an individuals talents which they can then draw out. "Real Madrid aimed to be the club known for breeding the players that play for the national team,” says academy coach Javier Moran.

Where you start, when you fulfill

Trophies are seen on top of a bookshelf in a study room at La Masia, the heart of the Barcelona's youth system and a residence for young players. /VCG Photo

With a powerful youth training system, Spain has made great achievements in sports scientific research as the Universidad Católica San Antonio de Murcia (UCAM) is now one of the leading sports institutions in Spain. It officially established an international relationship with Beijing Sports University in February 2015 to help the Chinese side in sports medicine, sports media, sports management and other possible programs in academic and communications.

As a team of the Segunda Division, Murcia has a total of 16 teams ranging in ages from U-8 to U-19. It has 23 players in each team and matches are held every weekend. Chinese teenager Huang Zhaoyi, an 18-year-old boy from south China's Guangdong, was selected as a U-19 player on September 2018.

"I enjoy it as it enriches my life. Hopefully, I will have a chance to play in La Liga in the future," said Huang who intends to seize the opportunity despite uncertain prospects.

Becoming the next Messi or Ronaldo is the ultimate dream of all football addicts, no matter where you come from. However, to embrace a period of time to immerse yourself into the fertile soil of Spanish football, which cultivated the superstars Raul Gonzalez, Iker Casillas, and Guti, is an opportunity few have.