The claim that the Premier League is the best in Europe is based to a large extent on the progress of English teams this season, and with four sides through to the quarter-finals of this year’s Champions League, it seems a difficult assertion to argue against.

But is it? Despite what those behind its constant and aggressive marketing would have you believe, the Champions League is not the only European club competition. The UEFA Cup has its detractors, but in terms of assessing the relative merits of different leagues, it acts as a valuable indicator.

In contrast to English clubs’ exploits in Europe’s premier competition, success in the UEFA Cup has been hard to come by. None of the English teams entered into this season’s tournament reached the quarter-finals, while only one, Tottenham, did so last year. Spanish clubs, on the other hand, made up three of the four semi-final spots in 2006/7, with two of those teams going on to contest the final. Of the three, Espanyol and Osasuna finished in the bottom half of La Liga.

‘In the last five years, six clubs in England have managed a top-four finish, but in Spain, 10 clubs have achieved the feat.’


Whether this is a sign of the weakness of the UEFA Cup rather than the strength of the Spanish league matters little; either way, it shows Spanish clubs below the top handful of sides to be superior to their English counterparts.

Three of the last four UEFA Cup finals have been won by Spanish teams (Sevilla, twice, and Valencia), with England contributing just a single runner-up (Middlesbrough in 2006).

The UEFA Cup is not necessarily a better indicator of a league’s strength, but it should be considered on an equal footing with the Champions League when making such assessments. The quality of a league should be measured not just by its elite teams, but by its strength in depth throughout the competition, from the top of the league to the bottom. It would be intriguing to see how English clubs would fare if each team from 1-20 was pitted against the club finishing in the corresponding position in the Spanish or Italian leagues.

Another fallacy is that the Premier League is the most exciting in the world; the same four teams qualify for the Champions League every season, with very few exceptions. In the last five years, six clubs in England have managed a top-four finish, but in Spain, 10 clubs have achieved the feat. In Italy, seven clubs have done it. There is more competition in these leagues than in the Premier League.

The Premier League is a great league and the strongest clubs in England are better than the strongest clubs from elsewhere in Europe. But the debate over which league is best is one that needs to go far beyond Manchester United, Liverpool, Chelsea and Arsenal.