CIES: 48 players trained in Switzerland in Top 5 leagues, top mark for such a low population country

48 players who were originally trained in Switzerland have played in a European Top 5 league in 2016-17 (as of October 2016), which ranks the country fifth among exporting countries (of players in Top 5 leagues), indicated the CIES Football Observatory in its 23^rd monthly report, with a case study in the Swiss Football League (SFL), on 15/03/2017.

Switzerland is also one of the countries where players leave to go abroad at a young age (see below). "These young international transfers of footballers are a significant problem for Swiss clubs. They have lost players who can improve the level of national professional leagues and deprive clubs of significant revenue," said the CIES. Switzerland is ranked twelfth in the UEFA association index as of 23/03/2017.

The Swiss Football League has implemented measures to protect "locally trained players", according to the CIES report. The figures of the SFL clubs show an average playing squad age lower than the European average (25.4 years old, compared to 26 years old across Europe as a whole). Only a few teams, such as FC Basel (see below)…