The developmental activities of elite soccer players aged under-16 years from Brazil, England, France, Ghana, Mexico, Portugal and Sweden;

What do the countries’ developmental activities have in common? The various pathways that were juxtaposed, such as; early diversification, early specialization and early engagement, were looked at in order to manifest the similarities and differences of youth soccer participation within the aforementioned countries. The study revealed only minor differences between the pathways of the various countries, however the similarities usually consisted within the early engagement and specialization pathways. What are the differences?  The differences throughout the varying countries, usually manifested in the amount and types of sport that the youth participated in. Another differential factor within the varying countries, was the amount of soccer specific practice within the early pathways. However, this is not necessarily the best determining factor when looking at the success of the youth systems of each country. But how do we define success when looking at youth systems within varying countries?  What about the elite training academies that were mentioned within the study? How do we determine the influence of each of those academies?