Pro-soccer teams recruit heavily at all age groups, from children being signed to "academies" to seasoned pros. They recruit all the over world. Most often, players get signed based on the club's proven ability to develop, available playing time, prestige of the league, etc. Salaries are important but not the main driver. Recruiting is the reason why Brighton stands third in the PL standings whereas Chelsea is 14th. Brighton's budget is a small fraction of Chelsea's. You are right that a relegated team would see an exodus of players. That happens at every relegated soccer teams: their best players are signed by other teams. However, the relegated teams keep the facilities, a nucleus of players and they can themselves poach players from the lower-level league. One difference is the relegated teams make quite a bit of money on these sales. That gives them a leg up on assembling a squad that makes promotion back to the higher league more likely than for other teams.

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