Top Leagues
There are leagues all over world, but for the most part, the best leagues are all found in Europe. The best of these European leagues are: the Premier League (England), La Liga (Spain), Serie A (Italy), the Bundesliga (Germany) and Ligue 1 (France). These leagues attract most of the world's best players and each of the leagues spend in excess of £600 million or $1.185 billion in wages.
The English Premier League was started in 1992 and contains 20 teams. Out of the top 5 leagues mentioned above, the Premier League is arguably the most watched and lucrative league in the world.It is ranked 1st among European leagues according to UEFA and includes some of the world's most recognizable teams such as Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea, and Liverpool, and also some of the most recognizable players such as Wayne Rooney, Didier Drogba, and Fernando Torres. Since 1992, only four teams have one the title, with Manchester United dominating the totals, winning 11 times. The other winners are Arsenal (3), Chelsea (3), and Blackburn (1).
La Liga was founded in 1929 and also contains 20 teams. It is definitely in contention with the English Premier League as the most watched and lucrative league and UEFA ranks the league 2nd among European leagues. It boasts the second highest average attendance for any professional soccer league, and eighth highest among all sports with an average 29,029 spectators. La Liga includes two of the most profitable and popular teams in the world in Real Madrid and Barcelona. These two teams have dominated La Liga winning the title 31 and 20 times respectively. They boast lineups that could compete respectably with the best international teams and dominate most others. They include players like Christiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, Andres Iniesta, and many more world class players.
Serie A was founded in 1898, but changed its format in 1929. It too includes 20 teams, including teams such as Juventus, AC Milan, and Internazionale. Compared with the other leagues, Serie A has produced the most European Cup finalists and winners out of any league, reaching the final a record 26 times and winning 12. Currently it is ranked 4th among European leagues according to UEFA's league coefficient. This takes into account how well the leagues' teams perform in the Champions League and in the UEFA Europa League. Juventus is the league's most successful team, winning the title 27 times. Internazionale is second (18) and Milan third (17) with the remaining 44 titles split up among 13 teams.
Bundesliga was founded in 1963 and contains 18 teams. Since the 1970s, FC Bayern Munich has dominated the league, winning the title 21 times. It is currently ranked 3rd among European leagues according to UEFA and it's average attendance of 41,802 was beaten only by the National Football League (NFL).
Ligue 1, or Le Championnat, was founded in 1933 and contains 20 teams. It is ranked 5th among European leagues according to UEFA. St. Etienne has won the most titles with 10, while Marseille, the current champion has 9, and Lyon and Monaco are tied for 3rd with 7. The other 18 titles have been won by 7 other clubs: Bordeaux (6), Nice (4), Lille (2), Paris St. Germain (2), Sochaux (2), Auxerre (1), and Lens (1).
sources:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Premier_League
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Liga
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Serie_A#Champions