Only the two French clubs Lyon and Marseille and the Scottish club Celtic FC are not from those leagues. Statistically 17 clubs out of the 20 richest football clubs in Europe are from the major four leagues (England, Germany, Spain and Italy). In this paper I will focus on the four most competitive leagues in Europe which are the English Premier League, the Spanish Primera Division, the Italian Serie A and the German Bundesliga. In 2007 the „European football market grew to 13.6 billion Euro which is an increase of 1 billion Euro.“ New investors, the penetration of new markets and a higher level of merchandising and sponsorship are only a few examples of the wealth of European clubs. The money involved nowadays offers much more opportunities for football clubs and opened a door into a new level of football management and competition.
The reason for the change of European football is diverse but the core of the change needs to be found in the business of soccer. Furthermore, the best domestic leagues which used to have a very similar level have led into a new era with significant differences. The quality of the game has improved and the sport has become much faster. Over the past years the sport has changed intensively. Due to the various countries on the continent football in Europe has a diversity of culture and tradition which is unique and extra-ordinary. Soccer in Europe is special not only because the sport was established in Europe (England) but also because it is the place of the best domestic leagues and the home of various successful national teams. Only a big event like the World Cup is able to release these changes away from social, religious or political divides. For a country like South Africa which will be the host nation of the World Cup in 2010 it can be a historic opportunity to strengthen the economy and the political situation in the country and to curtail the high crime rate. The Soccer World Cup, for instance, is the biggest single sport event in the world and its huge meaning has an influence even on politics, economies and a huge social significance. In fact, soccer has millions of supporters worldwide and can be named as a sport with an outstanding history and tradition. The so-called “World Game” was once categorized as the “only one world religion” by FIFA-President Sepp Blatter.
Spanish football – Competitiveness of the Primera Divisionĥ.1 Weaknesses – Political divides of Spanish clubsĥ.2 Opportunities – Reputation and tradition in Spainĥ.3 Future directions of Spanish footballĮuropean football (soccer) is the most popular sport in the world.
2.1 Strengths – The financial wealth of English club footballĢ.2 Weaknesses – England and the investment in human capitalĢ.3 Opportunities - The Premier League and the success in the Asian marketĢ.4 Threats - Competition within the English Premier LeagueĢ.4.1 The loss of traditional values in English club footballģ.1 Strengths – Competitiveness of Italian clubsģ.2 Weaknesses – Corruption and hooliganismģ.3 Opportunities – Quality of Italian football and new campaignsģ.4 Threats – Competition between the major European leaguesģ.5 The failure of the Italian club managementĤ.1 Strengths - The benefits of the 2006 World CupĤ.2 Weaknesses - The issue of competition in German club footballĤ.3 Opportunities - Strategies of the German Football AssociationĤ.4 Threats – Financial disadvantages of German clubsĤ.5 Future directions of German club footballĥ.