Is European Football in Need of Greater Equity?

As Ludogorets basked in the glory of yet another Bulgarian championship last summer, their remarkable achievement of clinching 14 consecutive titles brought history into focus. The only club to surpass them is Tafea from Vanuatu, leaving Ludogorets just one championship away from tying the world record.

Despite their overwhelming success at home, this powerhouse has not made an appearance in the Champions League for a decade. They appear too formidable for their domestic competition yet insufficiently robust to challenge the elite clubs across Europe, shining a light on the growing imbalance within the football ecosystem.

The Champions League Dominance

The current iteration of the Champions League, which started allowing titleholders to compete in 1992, features six teams from England, five from Spain, and four each from Italy and Germany. This concentration means that these four nations account for over half of the 36 teams participating in the league phase.

As the tournament has expanded in both size and financial worth—Uefa’s broadcasting rights skyrocketed from nearly £500 million in 2003-04 to £2.8 billion in 2023-24, with projections suggesting over £4 billion for the next cycle—the list of potential winners has significantly narrowed.

In the last 15 years, only Bayern Munich and Paris St-Germain have broken the stronghold of English and Spanish clubs on the trophy, while the last Italian team to secure the championship was in 2010. The prospect of former champions like Marseille, Ajax, or Porto winning the competition again seems unlikely, let alone clubs like Red Star Belgrade, PSV, or Steaua Bucharest, who were once dominant.

Shifts in Competition Dynamics

Recent changes to the competition have allowed for increased participation, more games, and unexpected victories, with debutants like Bodo/Glimt managing to defeat Manchester City and Atletico Madrid this season. However, Ajax remains the only club outside the top five European leagues to reach the semi-finals in the last twenty years, with Benfica the only other team to reach the quarter-finals in the past four seasons.

“If you had told those involved in establishing the Champions League in 1992 that this is what it would evolve into, they would likely have remarked, ‘We really messed up,'” stated Alex Muzio, president of the Union of European Clubs (UEC).

Muzio cites France as a cautionary tale, where competitions can become overly predictable, as evidenced by PSG’s pursuit of a 12th title in 14 years. “Fans lose interest when the outcome seems predetermined,” he commented, emphasizing that only four leagues currently stand at the top in Europe.

The landscape surrounding Ligue 1 remains challenging, particularly as it embarks on a direct-to-consumer streaming deal this season, positioning itself closer to the Eredivisie in the Netherlands than Serie A, which has seen a slight decline in domestic broadcasting revenue.

Challenges Facing European Football

Other leading leagues have also reached a plateau, with France set to have only one representative in the Champions League’s last 16 after PSG faces Monaco in the play-offs. Despite a wealth of talent, the competitive balance remains elusive.

Muzio, who is also the majority owner of Belgian champions Union Saint-Gilloise, argues that fans desire competitions characterized by greater parity, referencing successful leagues such as the Premier League, cricket’s IPL, and American football’s NFL. He warns, however, that increasing financial disparities are likely to create a clearer divide between the “haves” and “have-nots.”

Uefa acknowledges the importance of competitive balance in sustaining the game’s health and viability but asserts that it is a