S.L. Benfica, one of Portugal's biggest clubs with a reputation for producing excellent players, is ... More set to open the Benfica Residential Academy in Florida. S.L. Benfica The “world’s best” soccer academy is coming to the United States. Portuguese giant Sport Lisboa e Benfica is set to open the Benfica Residential Academy (Benfica RA) this summer at Saint Leo University in Tampa, Florida. The launch is the latest step in the club’s mission to nurture soccer talent worldwide. Benfica’s academy has generated more revenue from player sales than any other club, according to CIES Football Observatory. The club has made more than $550 million in transfer revenue from academy-trained players — from Manchester City’s Bernardo Silva and Rúben Dias, to Paris Saint-Germain’s João Neves — in the past 10 years. For Rui Costa, the club president and one of the greatest Portuguese players ever, the academy is central to Benfica’s identity. “The Benfica Campus has a strategic importance in establishing Sport Lisboa e Benfica both in sporting terms and in its immense international reach,” he says. “It is in our ‘Factory of Talents’ that we instill and develop the values and principles of the ‘Benfica way of playing,’ shaping some of the best athletes and professionals in the world — both in terms of competition and in their human and social development.” But the reputation as a talent factory for some of Europe’s most sought-after players has only emerged in the past two decades. A ‘Constellation’ of Academies “We were, let’s say, a little bit like the model of Real Madrid. We were a club to be ready to win,” Bernardo Carvalho, Benfica’s international expansion chief executive, tells me in an interview. MORE FOR YOU ‘Buckle Up’—Bitcoin Price Suddenly Braced For A ‘Cambrian Explosion’ Today’s NYT Mini Crossword Clues And Answers For Wednesday, March 26th Ukraine Unleashes Nikola Tesla’s Weapon In The Black Sea That changed in 2006 when Benfica built its flagship academy in Lisbon. Five training centers across Portugal followed. Bernardo Silva, Joao Cancelo and Ruben Dias are all graduates of the Benfica Academy. (Photo by ... More Michael Regan/Getty Images) Getty Images The success in Portugal has led to international expansion. A Benfica Academy in the Ivory Coast opened six months ago, with a similar agreement in the pipeline in Burkina Faso. There are technical partnerships in countries including Brazil, China, the UAE and UK. In the 2023/24 season, 16,000 young players in more than 20 countries experienced Benfica’s training methodology. “Instead of a constellation of clubs — so we’re not going to invest in a club in Australia or Japan — we decided to do a constellation of academies all over the world where talent is,” Carvalho says. “What we are creating is a natural pathway not only in Portugal, but for kids in Brazil, in Africa, in America, in Asia. “A kid at 18 years old can end up in the Benfica Academy. And if he’s good enough, he will go into the A team. And if he’s in the A team, he’ll be playing Champions League.” With 25 million registered players — 13 million boys and 12 million girls — in the U.S., compared to 300,000 in Portugal, Benfica sees a big opportunity to develop talent. “America is the number one strategic country where we want to be. I think it’s the country that’s going to grow more in terms of football,” Carvalho says. Benfica RA in Florida will offer two pathways for boys and girls in grades 9-12: one leading to professional soccer and another providing a direct route to top colleges through sporting scholarships. In the long-term, Benfica plan for up to 500 student-athletes to be training at the academy, which will use the university’s six soccer fields. “We want our competition teams to very soon become the best teams that will be playing in America,” Carvalho says. Benfica RA will be part of the 297-acre Saint Leo University campus, including six soccer fields ... More (some built specifically for the academy), a 59,000 square-foot wellness center, and resort-style facilities. Saint Leo University The Benfica Methodology Guilherme Müller, general director of Benfica Campus in Lisbon, says there is no one secret to explain Benfica’s consistent production line of talent. “But there are some things that help — it doesn’t happen by chance, that’s for sure,” he tells me in an interview. The club’s unique approach keeps players out of official competitions until age 12. Instead, they play in an internal Benfica league, where coaches do not intervene and points are awarded for dribbling and creative passing. “Instead of playing for 10 or 20 minutes, they play for two hours or three hours. And it’s a huge difference we see in their development,” Müller says. Training is intense but creative, using a variety of balls including soccer balls, tennis balls and foam balls to develop creativity and control. The program incorporates futsal, cage football and mandatory dance classes. “What we’re finding is that many of these kids, unlike older generations, lack mobility, flexibility and balance,” Müller says. “Dance can really be helpful.” Benfica also attempts to recreate the spontaneous, street soccer experience through exercises including obstacle courses. “The kids of today are not the kids of yesterday,” Müller says. “These kids don’t go to play football in the street. They don’t climb walls, they don’t grab apples from the neighbor’s tree, they don’t run away from dogs. “We try to recreate the streets inside the practice.” Complementing the creativity is data, with physios, performance analysts, nutritionists and psychologists closely monitoring players. The approach has been incorporated in a digital tool “Training Benfica Style”. It allows coaches from Portugal to the U.S. to follow Benfica’s methodology. Joao Felix, pictured here playing for FC Barcelona, came through the Benfica Academy before being ... More sold for more than $120 million. (Photo by Alex Caparros/Getty Images) Getty Images Academics and Ethics Müller says 80% of academy players who sign their first professional contract with Benfica will go on to have professional careers, even if not at the club. But he recognizes not every player will make it that far. “It’s very important for us that they become very good players,” Müller says. “But it’s also very important that they become good, decent citizens.” Like other big clubs in Europe, Benfica focuses on developing the person as well as the player. At the Benfica Academy in Lisbon, 82 players live on-site, with school success rates above 95%. The club works with local schools and offers homeschooling options to ensure education is a priority. “We know that the compatibility in this dual career between school and sport is tough. So it’s our responsibility to provide this support,” Müller says. The academy also has players participate in community service programs, such as working with disadvantaged children, elderly associations and distributing food and toys in Lisbon. Benfica’s Future in America So, why now for a U.S. academy? “In Europe, we know the birth rates are going down, the number of kids interested in sport is lower, even their motor abilities are changing with these times,” Müller says. “Portugal is, and will continue to be of course, our main pool. But the pool isn’t growing. So we need to be prepared to also look in different pools.” With an existing partnership with MLS club FC Dallas and about 1.3 million Portuguese descendants and immigrants in the U.S., Carvalho suggests Benfica could eventually open three academies in the country. He also sees an opportunity for international commercial growth. Already, 60% of Benfica’s merchandise sales come from outside Portugal. Playing in the Club World Cup this summer should only boost Benfica’s global profile. The main mission though, is clear: find the next generation of stars, wherever they are. “There is talent everywhere, and we want to be where it is,” Carvalho says. “I want the next (Christian) Pulisic to come out of a Benfica soccer school. “In a joking way, I say Benfica is now the Harvard of football. An academy is a university for footballers. And we have become the best.” Follow me on Twitter or LinkedIn. Check out my website. Editorial StandardsForbes Accolades