Cantera

Cantera, literally meaning 'quarry' in Spanish, is a term used in Spain to refer to youth academies and farm teams organized by sports clubs. It is also used to refer to the geographical area that clubs recruit players from. The term is widely used in football but is also applied to other sports, such as basketball. This article, however, is about the football canteras. Notable canteras include those of Athletic Bilbao, Real Sociedad, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atlético Madrid, Espanyol, Sporting de Gijón, Celta de Vigo and Valencia. Cantera, literally meaning 'quarry' in Spanish, is a term used in Spain to refer to youth academies and farm teams organized by sports clubs. It is also used to refer to the geographical area that clubs recruit players from. The term is widely used in football but is also applied to other sports, such as basketball. This article, however, is about the football canteras. Notable canteras include those of Athletic Bilbao, Real Sociedad, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Atlético Madrid, Espanyol, Sporting de Gijón, Celta de Vigo and Valencia. Since 1912, Athletic Bilbao have employed a 'cantera policy', which has come to be defined in an official (although not legally binding) signing policy whereby they will only recruit players with some link to the Basque Country. One of the main beneficiaries of the policy has been the Spain national team. Athletic has provided numerous players for it, second only to Real Madrid. During the early 1920s, the Basque Country was a breeding ground of great Spanish players. It was the first area where the sport really became popular, and the influx of immigrants from all over Spain was also a factor in the region producing dozens of quality players. In 1920, Spain made their international debut and entered a team in the Olympic Games. Of the 21 players in the squad, 14 were Basques, among them Pichichi, José María Belauste, Domingo Acedo and Félix Sesúmaga. Throughout their history, Athletic Bilbao have continued to produce many notable players while adhering to their policy. Among them were Telmo Zarra, the then all-time top La Liga goalscorer; José Ángel Iribar, 614 official matches with Athletic and a member of the Spain team when they won the European Championship in 1964; and Andoni Zubizarreta, who made a record 622 La Liga appearances and is also the second most capped Spanish international player. Other notable graduates of the Athletic cantera include Bata, Agustín Gaínza, José Luis Panizo, Andoni Goikoetxea, Julio Salinas, Julen Guerrero, Rafael Alkorta, Andoni Iraola, Fernando Llorente and Kepa Arrizabalaga. Their youth teams continue to be among the most productive in Spain. Athletic were not the only club to have a cantera policy — fellow Basque club Real Sociedad operated a similar policy until 1989. Neither were Athletic the only Basque club that provided players for the 1920 Olympics squad. Real Sociedad, Real Unión and Arenas Club de Getxo also provided players. In 1928, these four clubs became founding members of La Liga, demonstrating further the strength in depth of the Basque canteras at the time. The saying 'Con cantera y afición, no hace falta importación', translated as 'With home-grown teams and supporters, there is no need for imports', made sense during these early days. The ability of the Basque Country to produce great players was made clear during the early 1980s when Sociedad and Athletic won four Liga titles in a row between 1981 and 1984. The Sociedad team included, among others, Roberto López Ufarte, José Mari Bakero, Luis Arconada and Jesús María Zamora. Xabi Alonso, a World Cup winner in 2010, is also a product of Real Sociedad's youth system. Although Barcelona and Real Madrid are well known for regularly recruiting foreign players, both are renowned worldwide for producing local players. Along with Athletic Bilbao (see Bilbao Athletic), both clubs have notable reserve teams (Barcelona B and Real Madrid Castilla respectively) that are predominantly made up of Spanish players. Numerous senior players have graduated through the ranks of Barcelona's La Masia academy, including Francisco Carrasco, Ramón Calderé, Guillermo Amor, Albert Ferrer, Pep Guardiola, Sergi, Iván de la Peña, Francesc Arnau, Óscar, Roger, Gabri, Gerard, Luis García Sanz, Oleguer, Pepe Reina, Thiago Motta, Fernando Navarro, Xavi, Cesc Fàbregas, Carles Puyol, Víctor Valdés, Mikel Arteta, Andrés Iniesta, Bojan, Jeffrén, Lionel Messi, Giovani dos Santos, Gerard Piqué, Sergio Busquets, Pedro, Cristian Tello, Thiago, Rafinha, Marc Bartra, Gerard Deulofeu and Sergi Roberto, though some of these were recruited from overseas before signing professional terms, so are not 'home-grown' in the traditional sense, if in the technical sense. Similarly, numerous notable professional players have graduated Real Madrid's youth academy, known as La Fábrica (the factory). In 1966, Madrid won the European Cup with a team of 11 Spanish players and a Spanish coach, marking the first time a home-born team had won the competition. Many great homegrown players have since passed through the ranks, among them La Quinta del Buitre — Emilio Butragueño, Manolo Sanchís, Martín Vazquéz, Míchel and Miguel Pardeza. Graduates of the cantera also include Iker Casillas, Álvaro Arbeloa, Esteban Granero, Raúl, Guti, Luis García Fernández, Juan Mata, Kiko Casilla, Borja Valero, Rubén de la Red, Dani Carvajal, Álvaro Negredo, Roberto Soldado, Rodrigo, Dani Parejo, José Callejón, Juanfran, Javi García, Álvaro Morata, Jesé and Lucas Vázquez. The club has also produced some notable managers, including Vicente del Bosque and Rafael Benítez.