With Nottingham Forest consistently strengthening their first team roster by signing 24 senior players to the City Ground over the past two years, promoting academy graduates has become increasingly challenging. Despite this, valuable work continues at the Nigel Doughty Academy, one of England’s 29 Category One facilities known for nurturing young talent. Producing homegrown players isn’t a unique challenge for Forest, as clubs throughout the country face widening gaps between youth development and first team opportunities. However, the club continues its efforts, and aside from seeing a player like Ryan Yates progress through the ranks to captain the senior side, another positive outcome is watching academy graduates develop at other clubs, particularly when substantial transfer fees result.
Some clubs excel at this more than others, and the CIES Football Observatory Weekly Post has compiled a ranking of the world’s top 100 clubs by revenue from selling youth academy products over the past decade. CIES data shows Forest have earned €124million across ten years and €68million in the last five years, having produced and sold ten players. Brennan Johnson stands as the standout example, having reportedly commanded a £47.5million fee when moving to Tottenham in September 2023.
This €124million figure places Forest 11th among English clubs, trailing Chelsea who have accumulated an impressive €442million from 33 players over ten years, with Manchester City second at €404million from 35 players. The full English rankings show Chelsea at €442m, Manchester City at €404m, Aston Villa at €303m, Manchester United at €271m, Arsenal at €270m, Tottenham at €268m, Liverpool at €222m, West Ham at €170m, Leicester City at €170m, Leeds United at €165m, Nottingham Forest at €124m, Everton at €119m, Southampton at €118m, Norwich at €106m, Brighton at €104m, Fulham at €86m, Wolves at €85m, Newcastle United at €73m, Sheffield United at €72m, and Bristol City at €71m.
Training clubs are defined as the first clubs where players spent at least three seasons between ages 15 and 21, with figures including add-ons and dated from July 1, 2016. Globally, Benfica lead with €589million, followed by Ajax at €454million and Chelsea in third. Forest rank 60th worldwide according to CIES, outperforming clubs like AC Milan and Roma.
Currently, Forest’s Under-21 side occupies 17th position in the 29-team Premier League 2. Alongside Yates, Zach Abbott has featured in Premier League action this season. The 19-year-old made his Forest debut in 2022 and has accumulated ten senior appearances this campaign. His Premier League debut came in the 3-0 loss to Everton in December last year, while his first start came against Leeds in February.