Best Youth Academies in Football Manager 2026

Ranking the best youth academies in Football Manager 2026. Discover the TOP 350 football academies and wonderkid factories in FM26.

FM2026 list of clubs with the best youth recruitment, youth facilities, junior coaching and training facilities in Football Manager 26.

Find out the world's top football academies where it's most likely to find newgen wonderkids.

Developing Youth and 'Stealing' Wonderkids

Developing young players from your own academy into the first team is one of the most gratifying things in-game.

Managing a team with excellent grades when it comes to the quality of newgens being recruited can make that a lot easier.

Or if you can monitor the youth intakes of these clubs and raid them whenever you spot any extraordinary talents.

Date Published: November 4th, 2025

Youth Recruitment vs Youth Facilities vs Training Facilities

It's important to know the difference between YR, YF, JC and TF.

Training Facilities (TF) are used to train every player within your club. Every player being just that, senior and youth teams. Youth facilities are not used to train youth squads, a common misconception.

Youth facilities (YF) impact the development of newgens you are not yet aware of, they do not impact players already visible at your club.

Youth Recruitment (YR) impacts the quality of newgens entering your club.

To improve the quality of newgens entering your club, you need to improve the youth recruitment, junior coaching (JC) and youth facilities. To improve the development of youth already at your club, you need to improve the training facilities.

FM26 Best Youth Academies

So without further ado, let's dive into the list of the clubs with top youth academies.

Click on the table headers (name, YF, etc) for easy sorting.
You can also sort by multiple columns if you press and hold Shift while clicking the headers.

Men's Clubs

YR	Name	YF	JC	TF	Nation / Division
20	FC Midtjylland	16	16	17	3F Superliga
18	Brøndby IF	14	15	15	3F Superliga
19	FC Nordsjælland	16	17	14	3F Superliga
20	FC København	16	17	13	3F Superliga
18	Al-Wahda	15	12	15	ADNOC Pro League
20	Al-Ain FC	12	12	16	ADNOC Pro League
18	Al-Wasl	12	12	15	ADNOC Pro League
20	Al-Jazira	16	13	15	ADNOC Pro League
19	Shabab Al-Ahli	12	9	14	ADNOC Pro League
17	Borussia Dortmund	18	16	19	Bundesliga
18	FC Bayern München	19	16	19	Bundesliga
17	Bayer 04 Leverkusen	14	14	17	Bundesliga
17	York United	12	10	12	Canadian Premier League
17	Cavalry	14	10	14	Canadian Premier League
18	Forge	14	11	11	Canadian Premier League
18	Puskás Akadémia	14	12	13	Division I
20	MTK	11	13	12	Division I
19	Ferencváros	12	9	13	Division I
17	PSV	18	17	18	Eredivisie
19	Ajax	20	18	20	Eredivisie
19	AZ	18	18	18	Eredivisie
17	Feyenoord	17	17	17	Eredivisie
20	América de Cali	13	13	13	First Division
20	Junior	13	11	13	First Division
17	INT	11	12	16	First Division
18	Žilina	14	16	14	First Division
17	Sparta Prague	17	17	17	First Division
20	Stabæk	14	16	14	First Division
19	Chivas	13	13	15	First Division
18	Cristal	14	13	14	First Division
20	Envigado F.C.	16	16	13	First Division
17	Huachipato	11	13	12	First Division
18	FC Liefering	19	19	19	First Division
17	GRE	15	13	16	First Division
17	FLA	15	15	18	First Division
20	SAN	13	14	16	First Division
18	A. Bilbao	19	18	18	First Division
17	Trencín	13	17	12	First Division
17	Fortaleza F.C.	12	12	12	First Division
17	Girona	19	16	19	First Division
20	SPO	18	14	17	First Division
20	Defensor Sporting	15	19	9	First Division
18	Villarreal	17	17	17	First Division
20	Independiente Medellín	13	13	13	First Division
18	Univ. Católica	16	16	16	First Division
19	Univ. de Chile	17	14	17	First Division
20	Colo Colo	16	15	16	First Division
20	Millonarios F.C.	13	12	13	First Division
17	SEP	15	15	18	First Division
18	A. Madrid	18	16	17	First Division
20	Club América	14	13	15	First Division
20	Barcelona	20	20	19	First Division
18	Slovan Bratislava	12	13	13	First Division
20	Atlético Nacional	16	14	16	First Division
19	R. Madrid	19	18	18	First Division
18	FLU	13	14	13	First Division
17	Atlas	12	12	16	First Division
20	Deportivo Cali	14	13	14	First Division
17	Lillestrøm	14	13	14	First Division
20	Independiente Santa Fe	12	12	12	First Division
18	Alianza	13	13	13	First Division
20	Nacional	14	17	10	First Division
17	Lokomotiva	12	18	12	First League
17	Domžale	15	15	14	First League
19	Maribor	15	14	15	First League
20	Dinamo	15	19	14	First League
18	Hajduk	12	19	11	First League
17	Botev Plovdiv	16	14	16	First League
18	Sutjeska	12	11	11	First League
18	CSKA 1948	13	13	13	First League
19	Slavia Sofia	13	14	13	First League
20	CSKA Sofia	13	14	13	First League
20	Ludogorets	17	14	17	First League
20	Levski	13	14	13	First League
18	Olimpija	14	14	15	First League
19	Septemvri Sofia	13	14	13	First League
19	Buducnost	12	12	12	First League
20	Dinamo Tbilisi	15	16	13	Georgian National League
17	Dinamo Minsk	12	15	12	Highest League
18	Wellington Phoenix	15	14	15	Isuzu UTE A-League
20	Western Sydney Wanderers	16	10	16	Isuzu UTE A-League
18	Sydney FC	12	14	13	Isuzu UTE A-League
19	Mimosas	15	17	12	Ivorian Ligue 1
17	Nagoya	14	12	15	J1 League
17	Kashima	14	10	15	J1 League
17	Shimizu	13	12	14	J1 League
18	Hiroshima	16	12	15	J1 League
18	RSC Anderlecht	17	19	18	Jupiler Pro League
17	Club Brugge	18	16	18	Jupiler Pro League
19	Saburtalo	13	14	12
17	DL Wanda	10	11	11
17	Ajax CT	18	15	18
17	Senica	13	14	13
18	Standard	19	17	17	Jupiler Pro League
17	Banants	16	14	13
20	Cortuluá	13	13	11
17	KRC Genk	17	16	17	Jupiler Pro League
18	ZJ Greentown	10	10	11
18	Hangzhou	10	10	11
18	FC Admira Wacker	18	15	16
18	PFC CSKA Sofia	12	16	10
17	Pohang	16	17	15	K League 1
19	Ulsan	17	18	16	K League 1
18	Busan	14	18	14	K League 2
20	Qairat	18	17	16	Kazakhstan Premier League
18	Cibao FC	15	12	15	LDF
18	Paradou AC	12	13	9	League 1
17	Politehnica Timisoara	12	14	7	Liga 3 Seria 7
17	Étoile Sahel	12	12	13	Ligue 1
17	OL	18	17	17	Ligue 1 McDonald's
19	Paris SG	20	17	20	Ligue 1 McDonald's
18	Rennes	17	17	16	Ligue 1 McDonald's
19	NYCFC	18	12	18	MLS
18	FC Dallas	17	13	17	MLS
20	LAFC	14	12	16	MLS
17	Inter Miami	15	13	17	MLS
17	New York	14	13	14	MLS
20	LA Galaxy	17	12	17	MLS
18	North Texas	17	13	17	MLSNP Western Conference
18	Maccabi Petach-Tikva	14	17	13	National League
20	Lech	18	16	18	PKO BP Ekstraklasa
20	Legia	18	16	18	PKO BP Ekstraklasa
18	KGHM Zaglebie	15	15	12	PKO BP Ekstraklasa
18	Jagiellonia	14	12	14	PKO BP Ekstraklasa
19	Boca	15	15	17	Premier Division
17	Monagas S.C.	12	13	11	Premier Division
18	Young Africans	11	12	13	Premier Division
19	Vélez	17	15	15	Premier Division
17	Deportivo Táchira	13	13	13	Premier Division
18	FC RB Salzburg	19	18	19	Premier Division
17	SK Rapid	17	18	17	Premier Division
17	FK Austria Vienna	17	18	17	Premier Division
19	Caracas	13	13	13	Premier Division
17	AIK	14	17	15	Premier Division
18	Ismaily	13	13	14	Premier Division
17	IF Brommapojkarna	11	17	12	Premier Division
18	Rosenborg	15	15	15	Premier Division
17	Tromsø	14	15	14	Premier Division
20	Molde	15	13	15	Premier Division
20	Vålerenga	16	17	17	Premier Division
19	Shabab Al-Ordon	11	11	10	Premier Division
17	Hammarby IF	13	17	14	Premier Division
20	River Plate	16	16	17	Premier Division
17	Malmö FF	15	17	16	Premier Division
19	Sporting CP	19	19	20	Premier League
20	Sepahan FC	13	13	14	Premier League
20	Foolad	14	14	14	Premier League
20	Al-Ittihad Tripoli	10	10	11	Premier League
19	Fajr Sepasi	11	11	10	Premier League
17	Aston Villa	18	14	20	Premier League
18	Brighton	18	14	18	Premier League
18	Chelsea	20	19	20	Premier League
18	Man Utd	18	18	19	Premier League
17	Newcastle	14	13	16	Premier League
19	Remo Stars	15	17	15	Premier League
18	Kuwait SC	10	12	10	Premier League
20	Esteghlal	12	12	10	Premier League
18	Maccabi Tel-Aviv	17	17	15	Premier League
17	Al-Karamah SC	11	13	10	Premier League
20	Man City	20	19	20	Premier League
17	Široki Brijeg	10	10	10	Premier League
18	FC Porto	15	18	16	Premier League
20	Benfica	20	17	20	Premier League
17	Spartak Moscow	17	12	15	Premier League
17	Maccabi Haifa	17	16	15	Premier League
20	Željeznicar	12	11	14	Premier League
18	Dynamo Kyiv	18	14	18	Premier League
20	Shakhtar	17	15	17	Premier League
18	Guaraní (PAR)	13	15	13	Primera División
17	Cerro Porteño	16	15	15	Primera División
20	Dhofar	12	12	13	Pro League
17	Al-Nassr	11	13	13	Saudi Premier Division
18	Al-Hilal	14	14	12	Saudi Premier Division
18	Al-Ahli	14	12	13	Saudi Premier Division
18	Cantolao	10	13	6	Second Division
17	Barranquilla F.C.	13	12	13	Second Division
20	KIA	14	14	10	Second Division A
18	Génération Foot	16	18	15	Senegalese Ligue 1
19	Liga de Quito	14	14	13	Serie A
17	Emelec	12	13	15	Serie A
19	Barcelona S.C.	11	13	12	Serie A
19	Casciavit	19	15	19	Serie A
18	AS Roma	18	15	18	Serie A
18	Bergamo	18	17	17	Serie A
19	Blu-neri	18	15	18	Serie A
18	Celesti	19	13	18	Serie A
20	Independiente del Valle	16	20	15	Serie A
17	Empoli FC	14	13	10	Serie BKT
17	Southampton	17	15	19	Sky Bet Championship
18	Sundowns	14	14	16	South African Premiership
17	Girona B	19	16	19	Spanish Federation 2 Gr 3
20	Al-Sadd	11	11	11	Stars League
18	Qatar SC	10	8	10	Stars League
18	Al-Zawra'a	13	12	16	Stars League
18	Al-Mina'a	14	12	15	Stars League
18	Al-Rayyan	10	9	10	Stars League
18	Shandong	14	8	15	Super League
20	Basel	16	18	16	Super League
18	Zürich	15	17	14	Super League
18	Zhejiang	10	9	11	Super League
17	Young Boys	10	15	10	Super League
18	Grasshoppers	15	17	15	Super League
20	PAOK	16	14	15	Super League 1
19	Olympiacos	17	14	16	Super League 1
17	Paxtakor	13	13	14	Superleague
17	Bunyodkor	12	15	11	Superleague
20	Crvena zvezda	16	16	16	SuperLeague
20	Partizan	16	16	16	SuperLeague
17	UTA Arad	13	14	9	SuperLiga
19	Universitatea Craiova	14	15	13	SuperLiga
19	FCSB	15	16	14	SuperLiga
18	U Cluj	15	15	13	SuperLiga
17	FK Csikszereda	16	16	10	SuperLiga
18	Chonburi	10	8	11	Thai League 1
18	BG Pathum Utd	14	11	13	Thai League 1
17	Chiangrai Utd	13	9	12	Thai League 1
20	Muangthong Utd	13	12	13	Thai League 1
17	Bangkok Utd	13	11	12	Thai League 1
19	Buriram Utd	14	12	13	Thai League 1
18	Aberdeen	14	14	14	William Hill Premiership
20	Celtic	14	14	17	William Hill Premiership
20	Rangers	15	14	17	William Hill Premiership

Women's Clubs

YR	Name	YF	JC	TF	Nation / Division
20	Ahmedov FK	11	10	7	Birinchi Liga Centre
17	Be Sport	16	12	10	Jupiler Pro League
18	Univ. de Chile	13	13	13	First Division
19	Univ. Católica	13	14	13	First Division
17	Union Berlin	15	16	16	GP Frauen-Bundesliga
20	Olympik MobiUZ	12	13	9	Pro League
20	Internacional Palmira	11	13	11	Second Division
20	Formas Íntimas	11	13	9	Colombian Lower Division
18	Hajduk	14	19	13	First League
19	Dinamo	15	19	13	First League
17	Club YLA	18	16	18	Super League
18	Fukushima FC	17	17	15	Third Division
19	Olimpiya Toshkent	10	13	7	Jupiler Pro League
18	AP Brera	12	16	13	First League
20	Deportivo Cali	10	12	10	Premier Division
18	Nippon TV Tokyo Beleza	16	19	14	SOMPO WE League
20	América de Cali	10	12	10	Premier Division
17	Spartak	10	13	10	Super League
19	Grasshopper	16	19	15	Super League
20	Benfica	20	19	20	National Championship
17	Hamburger SV	15	18	15	GP Frauen-Bundesliga
17	FC St. Gallen	12	17	11	Super League
19	Luzern	13	20	11	Super League
20	Sporting CP	16	20	20	National Championship
20	Independiente Santa Fe	10	12	10	Premier Division
20	Colo Colo	13	14	13	First Division
20	FC Nordsjælland	18	20	16	A-Liga
17	Atletico Lusaka	12	12	7	First Division
18	BSC YB Frauen	12	17	10	Super League
18	Perth RedStar	10	12	9	NPL WA
17	Paris FC	15	16	16	Division 1
19	Zürich	16	19	14	Super League
18	R. Madrid	19	16	19	First Division
17	Levante	13	14	15	First Division
17	A. Bilbao	16	15	17	First Division
17	Barcelona	19	17	19	First Division
19	Paris SG	17	17	18	Division 1
18	OLL	18	17	19	Division 1
17	FC Bayern München	19	18	19	GP Frauen-Bundesliga
17	Eintracht Frankfurt	18	16	18	GP Frauen-Bundesliga
18	VfL Wolfsburg	19	18	19	GP Frauen-Bundesliga
17	Sydney FC	12	14	16	Ninja A-League
20	Amman FC	10	10	5	First Division
17	Jas Qyran	11	12	9	Second League South-West
17	Man City	20	17	19	WSL
20	Farul Constanta	17	18	16	SuperLiga
18	Arsenal	16	18	19	WSL
18	Chelsea	13	18	13	WSL
20	Olimpik Toshkent	10	10	7	Pro League
20	Academia Alemana	11	13	11	Liga Caucana de Fútbol
20	Ilbirs	10	10	6	High League
17	Auckland United	10	14	10	Northern League

Note that some of those clubs are not playable in the default database and you will need a custom database to unlock the leagues they compete in.

Let me know if you spot any mistakes, as it was a bit confusing with both men's and women's clubs.