The English Premier League is the best league in Europe. Or is it?

By: Bob | April 11th, 2007

The superlatives are flowing like a river about to burst its banks following Manchester United’s 7-1 thrashing of Roma in the Champions League on Tuesday. It was the best win in Europe ever for Manchester United, the best victory of any team in the history of the competition, the best performance since the dawn of mankind and on and on…

There’s no denying it was masterful and there’s no denying that England will have three teams in the tournament’s semifinals by the end of today, unless PSV somehow pull off a miracle against Liverpool. This strong showing from the Premier League sides has led to the reemergence of the age-old debate: what is the best league in Europe?

Manchester United manager Sir Alex Ferguson is ready to pronounce his league as being numero uno: “The fact that three English teams should be in the semifinals probably makes our league the best in Europe. Six or seven years ago Spanish football was the best.

“But on the evidence of this season Barcelona and Real Madrid are not as near to where they were in previous years. The competitive nature and the quality of the English game has improved over the seasons.”

He is right about the Spanish league being down this year, although it is worth pointing out that three Spanish teams could advance to the UEFA Cup semifinal. You can also make the case that football in Italy is not what it once was. The Bundesliga is competitive at the top but features some teams that probably couldn’t compete in the other leagues. France, Scotland and the Netherlands all have good teams but don’t have the depth of talent seen in England, Spain and Italy.

All of that said, I remain unconvinced that England’s league is truly the best. The top teams are excellent as we’ve seen in the Champions League, but after the top 3 – sorry Arsenal, you aren’t in their company this year – there is a significant drop in quality. England’s best might be the best this year, but as a whole the league doesn’t seem to be head and shoulders above Spain and Italy, at least in my opinion. The trend I see is that the money that the big clubs generate is concentrating the talent in a few while diluting the talent in their leagues. That makes it really hard to proclaim one league better than another unless your criteria is success in the European cups.

There is rarely a definitive answer to this question but it is fun to play along. How would you rank the top 3 or 5 leagues in Europe?

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Category: Champions League, Europe, World Football

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Martino

1. Premier League
2. Liga
3.Bundesliga
4.Ligue 1
5.Eredivisie
6.Russian Premier League
7Portugal League
8.Serie A
9.Turkey League
10.Greece League
11.Belgium Jupiler League
12.Ucraine Premier
13.Swiss League
14Scotland Premier League
15.Austrian Premier League
-a

1- Liga

2- Serie A

3- EPL
omg

just some more notes for all these avid epl haters.
spain would be fuck all without real madrid. a club that had millions pumped into it under franco's reign. in the 50s.
and the italian league. people only talk of recent match fixing scandals.. but unfortunately this sort of thing has been happening for a long time in italy. probably a lot more so in the past (60s etc) - need i remind people of the world cup they hosted in the 30s.. read 'The Dark Heart of Italy'.
england has the oldest clubs...richest traditions. so before u go on to categorize the epl solely as a money hungry, media hyped ses-pit of greedy fat cats... consider the history etc (we've hardly been unsuccessful by any means in europe, and u forget the many years top teams were banned from european competition ;))
omg

some of these posts are absolutely laughable. only Bren has any clue about what hes on about.
as he says. its all a matter of opinion. people appreciate the epl for its fast tempo..fluent...determined...fantastic defense, and of course wonderful players brought in as a result of being the most lucrative league in the world.
whilst some will appreciate the more technical aspects of la liga and serie A. my opinion however is that these leagues are only perceived to be more technically adept due to the slower tempo of the game. and the lack of pressure from defenses. zonal defense is the continental way.
enough said.
as far as the MLS goes..I'm sure it is improving, i however get tiresome of how much the media here try to force the MLS in our faces...there are countless shows which cover the mls as if anyone actually gives a toss here. i would rather watch the brazilian league, argentine... mexican even! than the ml bloody s. the commentary alone is enough to put me off.
having said that the interest in football in america does seem to be on the rise...and its good to see your country is on a larger scale willing to compete in a sport which countries of any significance actually play. :P
Bren

Trying to compare leagues is like trying to determine if rosie o'donnell is actually from this planet...you can't possibly know for sure! As far as the best league in the world, i think it differs from time to time...and eventually every country will be considered the best. England is having its way with world for now, but in a couple years time, this wont be true. Concerning the MLS, a lot of people hate to admit this but it IS getting better. Agreed, 10 years ago, you couldnt pay me to watch those guys play. I dont know if you saw some of the play-off games recently, but there was some decent stuff being played by some of those teams. Even Chivas tied Barcelona at home, despite being ahead by 2-3 goals. I think the game ended up 4-4 in teh end. The difference between MLS and Europe is not so much talent, although Europe is still superior in that category. Its just raw knowledge of the game and the way it should be played at the professional level that hinders MLS Futbol...
Cristiano

1)La Liga - Serie A
2)Premiere League
3)No one...
4)Bundesliga - Eredivise - League 1

English Premiere League might be the most know league in the world with the best media coverage and world broadcasting. However, premiere league will never reach the level of the Italian or Spanish teams. Also, I think that there is a big difference between Spain, italy, england and the rest.
EPL clubs are more reagular along the time, but the spanish and italian clubs are always above them even if is not allways the same club.
kaka

I would rather disregard EPL as the best league in the world. Yes, it can be said as the most competitive in the world. It is also the league with the highest total salary paid at the moment. However, the competitiveness has somehow diminished the real beauty of football. Players are more efficient and effective with the ball such that they tend to lack in creativity. For this, I have to utterly agree with what Valdano said recently regarding EPL clubs.
For this, also, I prefer to watch Spanish La Liga, where players holds the ball longer, shows creative moves, does no-look passes, does flip-flaps, does back-heels. It's all about creativity and beautification of the world of football, and no mere strength nor passion. Passion itself is boring.
Moreover, I couldn't understand why ppl like so much watching long ball passes and long range shoots that are performed by EPL top players like gerrard or lampard. Honestly, it's so boring.
Chris

This is bullshit. I watch all of the leagues! I can unequivocally say that the only reason you folks think that EPL is the best, is because it has the BEST COVERAGE and it has the most over-marketed "big teams". The coverage is always in high quality, and it has those eye/ear-catching art direction. IT'S NOT THE BEST LEAGUE! This would be a more accurate ranking:
1.) LA LIGA
2.) SERIE A
3.) EPL
4.) BUNDESLIGA
5.) All THOSE other leagues
Kyle

I saw the DC/Celtic game last year, and DC kicked the crap out of Celtic. They won 4-0 and DC's 4th goal was basically with their reserve team. In another 10-20 years, MLS teams won't be able to stack up with the Man Us or the Real Madrids of the world. However, I do think the best MLS teams would be good enough to outflank EPL relegation. There is just too much talent coming out of North and South America for the MLS not to become respectable. On that note, anyone know much about the Brazillian League? They won all 3 international FIFA club world cups, beating Barcelona in '06 and Liverpool in '05.
Louie

1.Spain - Still has the more gifted players
2.Italy - Still second
3.England - Best advertised & packaged league(aerial ping pong long balls doesn't count as skill)

4.Germany - Falling behind and in the second tier of leagues
5.France - Second of the second tier
6.Nederlands - Free flowing but clearly third of this group

The third tier is harder to rate in order:
Portugal,Greece,Belgium,Russia,Turkey, although with Scotland the gap between Celtic and Rangers and the 3rd team is so great it makes the league hard to rate.

MLS - Even more difficult to say as friendly matches don't count for anything.
Christivianho Jenas

Theres all you`s people from america saying MLS is good i watched it once and fell asleep tryin to watch it, very bad league, your best player freddie adu came to england to train with man united and was sent packing.lol. Its quite obvious premierships the best with the best players and the best wages and with the worlds billionaire owners puttin wotever money the club needs to win every cup going. La Liga is nowhere near EPL top clubs with money. And Celtic and Rangers are better teams than PSV and AJAX. Celtic are better than benfica and porto anyday.
RobertJr

to be honest with of you here is the breakdown for you.4 or three years ago would have put either serie a and Laliga as the best because they were at par.but right as it stands,is
1.english league
2.Laliga
3.serie A
4.bundasliga
5.french league
6.eradivese(holland)
7.portuguese league
8.Scotland
9.russian league
10.belgium
11. turky
no one can dispute that at the moment
Paolo Barri

GOOD LORD!!!!!!!! scottish league better than the dutch or portuguese leagues? LMAO the sottish league is always a foregone conclusion bad teams and bad players only celtic can do something in europe but hardly do anything. For me the stongest league in europe definetely spanish in depth it is the most difficult after that serieA also and then the premiership but only coz they have so many good foreigner players
Derek

The premership is not only the best league it is the most watchable league.
UtahSaint

Clearly the premiership is the best team this year 3 out of 4 in the champions leage and a nice little run in the UEFA cup keeps that league above la liga. 3rd place is close between serie a and the bundesleague.... after that, it's a free for all, a couple of good clubs in all of the followng countries Portugal, Holland, France, Scotland, Turkey, Belgium, Austria, Russia, Ukraine - but none of them are lose to the top 4 divisions.

As for the MLS, which joker said the MLS teams could survive in the lower parts of the EPL? Don't make me lol too loud my friend, MLS would be ok in the Championship (maybe) - but I doubt LA or DC (assuming they are the biggest/best) could compete with Sunderland, Birmingham, Wolves or Derby - let alone Preston and WBA...

Another way to look at it... Terry Cooke is one of the star midfielders at the rapids - he left Sheffield Wednesday for the Rapids... Wednesday are on a bit of a good year at the moment, and they are 10th in the championship.... MLS teams in the Premiership... they'd be sitting below West Ham at the foot dudes...

Last thing - just check the salaries of the MLS vs any English league.. that tells you a lot. (it also tells you the MLS is being very well managed financially!)

English Teams Salary - 2006
http://sport.independent.co.uk...

MLS Teams Salary - 2006
http://www.washingtonpost.com/...

All that being said - go Rapids!!!!
Riccardo

next year serie A will be back on par with spain and england fighting out for the best league in europe, juventus is back and the teams underneath the big 4 keep improving
Ian

I'm torn a little, because I think the quality of football is better in Italy, but the fact is, matches were fixed. This is about the best LEAGUE in Europe, and a league with a major match-fixing scandal, and a complete inability to control its fans, isn't a top league regardless of its immense pool of talent. Just my opinion.
Sam

Scandal or no scandal, Italy's way above Germany as I see it.
Ian

I mostly agree with that last list, although find it difficult to put Scotland under Turkey. Turkey? Also, I'd give a bit more love to the Bundesliga, though they have crashed out of the big Euro competitions this season. Italy needs to clean up its act scandal-wise before I'd move them back up. Here'd be my top ten:

1. England
2. Spain
3. Germany
4. Italy
5. France
6. Netherlands
7. Portugal
8. Belgium
9. Scotland
10. Turkey
Riccardo

If you make it into tiers I think it would look somewhat like this...
1st tier
Spain, England Italy, Germany (falling fast into the 2nd tier)
2nd tier
Portugal, France, Netherlands
3rd tier
Scotland, Belgium, Turkey, Greece

I would say that Spain and England are very close...the "average" player in Spain and even Italy are more skilled than the "average" English player...England might have more star power though.
MLS is prob more on par with like...Serie B or the Championship
Sam

Russia in the top 5? Ha-ha.

I see it like this.

1. England
2. Spain
3. Italy
4. France
5. Germany
6. Netherlands
7. Portugal
8. Belgium
9. Turkey
10.Scotland
Laurie

Also, can't remember where I read this, but one of the reasons EPL is so attractive to foreign players is that they can set up part of their salaries to be paid into offshore tax shelters. That's one of the big reasons you'll find so many French and other foreign players in EPL.
Laurie

The one good thing about the Galaxy playing so many international friendlies this year is that it will give us some opportunity to see how we really do stack up against the best.

DC United held Real Madrid to a 1-1 draw last year in an extremely exciting game. (Although most of the excitement was provided by Madrid -- a much more dramatic team in every way, both good and bad.) Yes, granted, MLS was in the middle of the season and Madrid's season hadn't started yet, but still. MLS is nowhere close to the top English teams, but Eastern European? I don't think that's it either.
Laurie

"The trend I see is that the money that the big clubs generate is concentrating the talent in a few while diluting the talent in their leagues."

Absolutely true. MLS is wise not to follow the English model. Imagine what AEG would do with unlimited money to throw at players.
Greg

Not to promote my little cubby hole here on this site, but what utter disrespect for the Portuguese League! Shame to you all! The cream at the top (Porto, Sporting, and Benfica) is excellent and produces top players (see Crissy Ronaldo) to make other worldwide leagues that much better. The best league at any given time is dictated by the amount of money it can spend. The best league(division) in Major League Baseball is probably the AL East, simply because they have the teams (Yankees and Red Sox) with the most money. Give Portugal the money the top English clubs have and they'll move up just as easily.
Bense

If it's for me, it's:

1. Spain
2. England
3. Germany
4. Italy
5. France
Wes

Put another way, would Mexico's top teams be able to compete in Europe? The best teams in MLS were competitive against the Mexican teams but still lost. If anything I think MLS is most comparable to the league south of our border.
Sean

i think a lot of american fans underestimate the mls. there have not been a lot of exhibitions of clubs vs. euro squads but look at how dc has done: 7/06 4-0 vs. celtic, 8/06 1-1 vs. real madrid. two very good results in games the euros played to win - or at least claimed to and put out a squad to do so.

that said, we must consider dc is clearly the greatest club in mls history, these two results came from a season in which they won the supporters' shield, both matches played on us soil. however, dc doesn't dominate the mls the way that celtic does the spl. that said, it doesn't look like a real stretch to compare it to the spl as i mentioned before.

everyone agrees that it is truly impossible to compare leagues, but this is as close to an evidence-based argument that can be made concerning the mls. only with more friendlies can we really compare the leagues.

and just to throw it out there - last month the rapids reserves (a true reserve squad with no beckerman, mastroeni, gomez, hernandez, brown) defeated the valencia reserves 1-0 in spain. the parent clubs were mls semifinalists vs. champions league quarterfinalists... not too shabby.
Eugenius

MLS is on par with Russia or Ukraine??? You gotta be kidding me...I can guarantee any of the top Russian teams(CSKA, Spartak, Loko, Zenit, etc) or even Dinamo Kiev or Shaxtar from Ukraine will easily defeat any MLS teams...Russian Premier League is probably in the top 5 now, behind EPL, La Liga, Serie A and Budnesliga...level of play is better than Ligue 1 or Eredivisie
Chris

Pretty hard to judge Serie A with all the match fixing that was going on.
Nathan

the super-league teams will always ebb and flow..2002 CL Finals anyone? 3 italian teams in the semi's and 2 in the finals at old Trafford. I don't think they represent the overall quality of their respective leagues. The UEFA Cup could be argued as the better barometer for league status as they match-up mid-table teams, where $ don't decide line-ups at every position. England exports their game the best, so bias is inherent to lend to their league. I think the big 3 are actually very level at the top, Bundes a small step down, better quality than most will give credit to - Munich is in the CL Semi's, but fighting for CL spot domestically. Ligue 1, Erediv and Liga a step below that. Contrary to Sean, I don't think MLS matches up top to bottom with any of the above.
Patrick

Perhaps one of the ways to gauge it is to look at whats going on away from the Champions League. In the UEFA Cup right now 3 English teams are topping their groups (Tottenham, Blackburn & Newcastle), as opposed to 1 Spanish team (Espanyol) and 1 Italian team (Parma).

For me its,
1)English Premier League
2)La Liga (close second)
3)Serie A
Peter

1. Spain
2. England
3. Italy
4. Germany
5. Holland

MLS is probably on par with what you find in Eastern Europe in countries like Ukraine, Russia and Romania.
Tom

Bob, I think you make a great point about the concentration of talent in the Premiership, making its elite teams stronger but not necessarily the league as a whole. The English league used to be famous for its depth, meaning even its smaller teams were also good, but now I suspect the bottom half of the Premiership would struggle against their counterparts in La Liga. The latter league's technical quality is still much higher as a whole.
Sean

1. la liga - much closer competition top to bottom with a true title race this year (barca, sevilla, zaragoza, madrid, valencia, wow!) and a very interesting relegation battle. also, you can't deny the talent!

2. premiership - too topheavy, and parity will only get worse with the new tv deal

3. serie a - talent and stars are undeniable and the derbies and rivalries seem to be the best. also, more drama than daytime tv (although not always good)

4. eredivisie - still too much of a feeder league. good competition among top teams (psv, ajax, az, feyenoord)

5t. ligue 1 - feeder league, and a bit boring outside of ol and marseille
5t. bundesliga - plummeting in both talent and aesthetics

let's expand this topic a bit though, where does mls rank vs. euro leagues?
in my opinion, some of the top teams could compete with midtable or relegation fodder in england. but as a league, can we compare it to scotland as far as talent and skill? what about portugal? benfica has played friendlies with mls teams in the past and i remember it being competitive. now, mls might lack the superstars (quaresma, simao) but i think the teams might be on par.