Atletico Madrid Academy & Training Ground 2026

Atletico Madrid training ground: Centro Deportivo Wanda Atletico de Madrid (Cerro del Espino)

Atletico Madrid academy: Atletico Madrid cantera

Founded: Long-established academy system, with a reserve team in the Spanish lower divisions.

The Atletico cantera focuses on producing physically robust, tactically disciplined players who can fit the structured system of Diego Simeone. The output is less famous than La Masia or La Fabrica but produces a steady stream of senior contributors and high-value sales.

Notable Atletico Madrid academy graduates

The story of the Atletico Madrid academy

Atletico Madrid have developed their training and academy operation steadily since opening the Wanda Atletico de Madrid complex in Majadahonda in 2003. The site has been expanded multiple times to keep pace with the rise of the senior team under Diego Simeone. The academy itself, the cantera, has produced some of the most identifiable Atletico players of the modern era. Fernando Torres remains the most iconic graduate, but the long-serving Koke and Saul Niguez are the central examples of how the academy feeds the senior squad. Rodri, now widely regarded as one of the best midfielders in world football, began his development at the Atletico cantera before a complex path through Villarreal and back to Atletico, before being sold to Manchester City in one of the most profitable academy-linked deals in the history of the club.

Atletico Madrid academy graduates at a glance

Frequently asked questions about the Atletico Madrid academy