The Cantera policy: Athletic Bilbao's historic tradition and its downside

In 1958, the Euskadi ta Askatasuna or the ETA was formed to liberate the Basque nation from the rest of Spain. This region, lying along the Bay of Biscay in northern Spain, was always part of the country but in many ways, far different.

For years they have tried to attack the Spanish Nationalist government to get liberated, but now, independence only seems like a distant dream to them. The Basque area and its 3 million people have been a close-knit society for centuries and value their traditions above everything else. This translates into Basque football as well.

In La Liga, the top flight of Spanish football, there are four clubs from this region - Deportivo Alaves, SD Eibar, Real Sociedad and Athletic Bilbao. With the first three clubs being mainstays in the La Liga only in the last few years, Athletic Bilbao have a very different story to tell.

In 1929, Bilbao was one of the three founding members of the Primera Division in Spain. They have also never been relegated from the top flight since then, with Real Madrid and Barcelona being the only other clubs to have done that. However, their rich history isn't what sets them apart in today's footballing world. It's their affection for tradition.

In a time where football clubs are ready to pay hundreds of millions of Euros on footballers and their wages, Athletic have had a policy of fielding a team consisting only of Basque players for over a century now. This is known as the cantera policy and it involves recruiting players who are locals of a particular geographical area.

Using this policy, Bilbao have won 8 La Liga titles, 24 Copa Del Rey, and 2 Spanish Super Cups, beating Barcelona 5-1 on aggregate on one occasion. They have produced some very good footballers who have gone on to make it big at other top clubs as well. Thus, it's quite safe to say that Bilbao have an extremely well-run youth academy.

Their academy, Lezama, has played a major role in the club's development and is responsible for producing about 85% of their senior squad. Their close-knit community raises young boys with an innate passion and love for their region, making it every boy's dream to play in Bilbao's red and white.

The Bilbao players with the Basque flag after winning the Spanish Super Cup. (Image Source: Sports Business Management)

What is the downside?

With football becoming a global sport, Athletic Bilbao have come under scrutiny for not moving on and a lot of critics have rained down on them for being outdated. Their cross-town rivals, Real Sociedad, had a similar policy but gave this up in 1989 to be more competitive. Bilbao stood the test of time and stayed true to their Basque-only requirement but made some relaxations without losing their identity.

They send their 18-year-old academy graduates on loan to clubs like Basconia and Antiguoko and re-sign them when they are ready for first-team football. Kepa Arrizabalaga was a product of this system. He graduated from the Bilbao academy, moved to Basconia, and returned to his parent club after a couple of loan moves which ensured he was ready for the high standards of Spain's top flight. In August 2018, he moved to Chelsea for a sum of £72m which, at the time of writing, is a record fee for a goalkeeper.

Aymeric Laporte was born in Agen, France and plays for the French national team but was of Basque descent through his grandparents. Bilbao scouted him early and he played six successful seasons for them. He then signed for Manchester City for £57m in January 2018, which was a record fee for both clubs at that time.

Ander Herrera is a slightly different case compared to the ones mentioned above. Despite being born in Bilbao, Herrera played for the Real Zaragoza youth team and then broke into their senior team in 2009. Two impressive seasons later, Bilbao signed him for a fee of €7.5m. After four seasons with the Basque club, Ander Herrera moved on to Manchester United and subsequently Paris Saint Germain.

These seem like good deals, but Herrera, Laporte and Arrizabalaga were important players in the first team and replacing them with academy graduates wasn't easy. This reflects in their silverware count as they don't have many trophies to boast over the past few decades which is quite unlike a club that is as historically relevant as Athletic Bilbao. While winning is the sole definition of football for every club in world football, Bilbao have gone a different route. The fans don't look at their football club as a competing organization but as a reminder of their cultural identity and history. In a survey conducted by El Mundo, 76% of the fans would rather see Bilbao get relegated than give up their cantera policy.

What's interesting is that in an era where football is becoming increasingly capitalist, Athletic Bilbao value identity and familial ties above everything else.