AZ’s North Holland academy fuels first‑team with 13 home‑grown stars

AZ’s new "Opgeleid in Noord‑Holland" campaign highlights that thirteen players from the club’s own academy are now regulars in the first team, and that 69.7 percent of all playing minutes in the first seven official matches of the 2026‑2027 season were supplied by those home‑grown talents – the highest proportion of any club worldwide.

AZ’s local talent campaign

The club has plastered the slogan across social‑media posts and roadside posters, insisting that the province’s fertile ground is producing the next generation of professionals. 13 academy graduates feature in the senior squad, a figure the club hopes will rise to an entire eleven, echoing the model once employed by FC Barcelona.

In the opening seven fixtures, those graduates accounted for 69.7 percent of total minutes, a statistic released in an official AZ press statement. The club’s ambition is to field a full side of locally trained players before the season’s end.

Roadtrip through North Holland

Our reporters set off on a Tuesday afternoon, cruising the A9 towards Alkmaar while tracing the “Opgeleid in Noord‑Holland” trail. The first stop was the sportpark of third‑division Fortuna Wormerveer, situated in the birthplace of singer Wolter Kroes and shadowed by the Forbo flooring factory.

Voor Kees Smit the journey began at De Foresters, where Peer Koopmeiners (pictured in the middle with Smit) first kicked a ball for Vitesse ’22, a moment captured by photographer Pim Ras. The covered stand at Fortuna Wormerveer is approaching ninety years old, a testament to the club’s deep roots.

Joost Cornelissen, former chairman of Fortuna Wormerveer, greeted us with a reminder of the club’s long‑standing link to Ajax: “Jullie weten dat wij altijd met Ajax hebben samengewerkt?” He later explained that volunteers, many in their seventies, keep the canteen running and the grounds tidy.

“Dat krijg je als je niet meer zo goed hoort…”, one of the older volunteers laughed, referring to the noisy wind that sweeps the polders. An old sea‑container labelled “Oud‑papier ploeg Fortuna Wormerveer” serves as a collection point; Cornelissen admitted he could not say how much money the paper brings in, but added, “Maar het zal je nog verbazen.”

Links with Ajax and future prospects

Fortuna Wormerveer also nurtured right‑back Elijah Dijkstra, who broke through spectacularly this season for AZ. Should AZ sell him, the amateur side is likely to receive a percentage of the transfer fee, although Cornelissen confessed he could not even pronounce the youngster’s name correctly.

In 2016 the club became a partner of Ajax, exchanging knowledge and occasional match tickets for a “reservation” on Fortuna’s biggest talents. “Als spelers door meerdere profclubs werden gevolgd, zeiden we dat ze het beste naar Ajax konden gaan,” Cornelissen recalled.

Last year he removed the Ajax partnership billboard from the main field, noting, “Er hangt nu een bord waar we wél geld aan verdienen.” The episode underscores how local collaborations continue to shape the region’s football landscape.