Overrated in terms of what? To me it's one of the top three leagues in the world on average, this year I would say the #2 in the world (because in Serie A Juventus' suspension and AC Milan's been in bad form at times themselves). The top 4 teams in the Premiership are still very good teams, and could put 4 teams into the quarterfinals of this year's CL. Now if you mean overrated by how some Premiership and English fans rate it the best league in the world, I would agree with you.
Definitely, at least here in the US. One of the main reasons for that is that the English speak the same language as we do and so it's easier for new soccer fans to follow the premiership than to follow La Liga or Serie A. Most of us Americans don't feel very comfortable dealing with a language we don't understand.so the EPL is number one here. You'd be surprised: coverage of La Liga in England is much bigger than it is here in the US. That's because the Brits are much more soccer-savvy than us. I'm just stating the reasons, personally I thing La Liga is the best league in the world.
It's overfinanced but not overrated, except by a few. It's unquestionably one of the top 3 leagues in the world but to immediatley call it the "best" is probably wrong... if not a bit meaningless, anyway. However the inflation in transfer fees amongst Prem clubs maybe leads some outsiders to think that all players transferred are Pele-esque superstars. The ludicrous amount of money spent on Carrick is a good example.
It's a question of supply & demand. The fact that the TV pie is split much more equitably in England than in Spain and Italy leads to mid-table teams demanding bigger fees for their good players (because they don't need the money as much) and wiling to pay more (because they have more money). Add to this that everything is done in GBP, which is a killer currency, and you have transfer fees that may not reflect the level of a player in the international transfer market. That said, I agree, the EPL is IMO not overrated at all. There was a very good column by John Carlin (a journalist with dual Spanish/English citizenship who is based in Spain) in a Spanish daily a couple of days ago about how the Premiership's stock is on the rise among players as the best place to play. I for one am usually more entertained by EPL games, but that is entirely subjective.
I think it is overrated in the sense that the EPL gets much more publicity than any other league in the world. So a better player in Spain of course would not be rated as highly as an inferior player in spain. I'm sorry EPL fans but Drogba is not the world's best striker, Terry is not the world's best CB, Cole is not the best LB in the world. I think Villa scored more goals in his first season with valencia than Drogba did with his first two for chelsea.
Name me a better left back than cole then And I cant remember people ever saying Drogba was the best striker in the world. And Terry is one of the best centre halves in the world. I agree that Villa is one of the best strikers in the world.
You have to keep in mind that my argument is that the EPL is overrated, not that it is a bad league. Better left back than cole? Let's just say Zambrotta for now. One of the best centre-halves Terry? Certainly, I never denied it, but my point is that he gets much more media attention than other centerbacks who are as good if not better than him. Many fans have gone on to say that he is the best in the world. As an example of someone who COMPARATIVELY gets less attention I would say Alessandro Nesta (and Nesta is arguably not inferior to Terry). Actually a lot of people were proclaiming Drogba as the best striker in the world.
Well for my money Drogba definitely is one of the best. I agree with you though that a great EPL player gets more pub though, than a player that's just as good in a comparable league.
Players in England get more publicity because the Premiership is much better at publicising itself than any other league. Yes there are high transfer fees, but that's because there are so many rich teams in England, because there's a more even split of TV money and even the small clubs make good ticket and sponsorship revenue. Some of the mid to lower teams in Spain and Itay are very badly run. There are also some ridiculously high transfer fees in Italy and Spain.
A major contributing reason to that is that it's an English-speaking country. It's true that the EPL is a very well marketed product but the ease of communication is a good reason for that. Of course that's not all there is to it; it was one of the earlier leagues to really make itself media-friendly, but in its global spread, the use of English as a business language really worked. Similarly in England you have the crash-n-burn stories of, say, Leeds. Not as many as in England; and again, these are products of TV and media money, in which the *major* Italian and Spanish clubs lead the way along with Manchester United.
That's basically my point, because the EPL speaks English, it will automatically have a higher profile and prestige, whereas an equal or better player in Italy and Spain won't get the same recognition. If Ronaldinho played for ManU...there would be temples dedicated to him in some parts of the world
I find italian football boring....btw did they allow fans in the stadiums yet?? I can't watch a football game with freaking half the stadium empty...too quiet.... a football game with only 7 year old playing is louder lol.
It is a bit simple to say it is because of the language. Latin America has millions of football fans, far more than the US, Canada, Australia combined. More money from their supporter base than North America, etc. in TV rights? Probably. The figures could be looked up. The region that the EPL has really taken hold in is Asia. EPL is the big money and the big league that is most widely televised and watched for a reason other than language, probably. I think that it is in part that the English league is more physical, and thus more accessible for the world. Italian football is seen as too much diving and hair spray, and Spanish too technical and "galactico" without the same work-ethic. Players in the English league are "harder" with a stronger work-ethic. Once you are a conneseur of football, you forgo the long-ball physical style of English football and move towards the more technical leagues in Spain. But Rupert Murdoch and his push to own the worlds satellite TV market helps enormously. It is probably natural that the English speaking countries and predominantly protestant Northern European countries would send their players towards and follow the English leagues first, and the Catholic Latin America the Spanish leagues. That is in part for the style of football as much as the language or any feeling that the leagues in Southern Europe are "ethnic".
It's a tad arragant really to say that the Premiership is THE best league in the world. However, it is certainly amongst the top 3, perhaps top 2 leagues in the world. What it all comes down to in the end is this question: which league entertains you the most? MY answer to that, is the Premiership. But each to their own.
We're talking about the Scottish Premiership, right? 'Cause there's no doubt that Premiership thing in England is overrated. .
Spot on.... Here are the top 5 most prestigious leagues in the world. (in order) 01 - English Premiership 02 - English Championship (level 2) 03 - Scottish Premiership 04 - English League One (level 3) 05 - American Major League Soccer The Canadian, Australian, and South African, and Welsh, and Irish leagues aren't far behind. you know why....because they speak English. When I tune into watch some obscure foreign league, I can't understand when it's a throwing, a corner, or even a goal. The language barrier blinds me. Not even when the English commentators are blatantly telling me everything what's unleashing before my eyes, I'm just blinded. You see football is all about listening. That's why no deaf people follow football, they don't know where they are. "Real Madrid, Barcelona"........what does that mean? That's some foreign language. Whereas English clubs have meaning, Everton for example. Everton means the descendents from heaven who came from above to save mankind from sin. That is why they are called the people's club. Or Liverpool, the the fallen angels who were dismissed from heaven by god himself...i.e "Satan", also known as the darkside. that must explain why the second tier of England is getting better average attendences than most leagues around Europe..... because they speak English. It's also explains why English stadiums average 95% capacity compared to their European neighbours, also explains why the stadiums are in great condition, why the football is more end to end, more passionate, and why the English league is the oldest league in the world, and why the FA Cup is the oldest competition in the world. All down to the English language, which makes it's more prestigious and special.
you mean the english primiership? i dont like this leauge at all. the fans are crap all game sit and clap hands. like they in a theater the football is too much tactical and its boring. this leauge popular becuse all the foreign players there. and its popular in many countries becuse that. i hate this leauge. i hate the managers who speak to media every 2 minutes to get names for themself threre. this leauge have no soul. everything in money.
the premier league is popular cuz of $$$$$ just look at fox soccer channel's programming, its like a love fest of premier league action the league is entertaining, but its level of play is overrated, there's a lot of individual talent, but most teams play such an open style that a lot of players don't play to their strengths, hence a large turnover on rosters year in and year out