Top clubs in European football have 2.4 grass pitches and 1.5 synthetic turf pitches on average. In the last five years, they have invested over EUR 5 billion in training facilities.

These are just some of the findings UEFA has released in its study on training facilities and youth investment across Europe.

The interactive report offers some unique insight.

• 53 top tier clubs (in 33 different countries) have inaugurated new training centres in the last two years with at least a further 27 currently in development.
• The 673 clubs that participated in the study, together have 2,750 full-size fields.
• 43% of the clubs share facilities with other clubs.In Andorra, Finland, San Marino and Wales, 100% of the UEFA survey facilities are shared to a certain extend.
• 1 in 5 facilities are open to all club’s squads.
• 47% of the facilities are owned by the municipality.
• Investment by European top division clubs in training facilities over the last five years was more than €1 billion.
• 41% of the clubs invested in new pitches, on 21% opted for a full refurbishment.
• 76% of the clubs with a women’s team use the same facility as the men’s team.
• Due to climate, clubs in Finland, Sweden, Norway and Russia have a tendency to utilise artificial/hybrid pitches at their training ground, while Danish clubs possess on average the highest number of training pitches – attributable to the fact that all top-level clubs in Denmark have direct links between their grassroots sections and their senior teams.
• On average, Danish clubs have 6.4 full-size natural grass pitches and 2.9 synthetic/hybrid pitches in place.
• While the investment in training facilities varies between clubs, the average club amount dedicated in the last five years in Germany, Hungary, Spain and Switzerland stands at more than €5 million. This demonstrates clubs’ commitment to long-term development and sustainability in their operating strategy.
• In Bosnia-Herzegovina, Croatia, Denmark, Faroe Islands, Finland, Hungary, Iceland, and Scotland, 100% of top division clubs have upgraded their facilities in the last decade.

You can read the full study here