Spanish La Liga teams:
FC Barcelona -- Real Madrid -- Sevilla -- Atlético Madrid -- Villarreal -- Valencia -- Deportivo La Coruña -- Málaga -- Mallorca -- Espanyol -- Almería -- Racing Santander -- Athletic Bilbao -- Sporting Gijón -- Osasuna -- Real Valladolid -- Getafe -- Xerez -- Real Zaragoza -- Tenerife .
The Spanish La Liga is very competitive, meaning that most teams are a threat to one another's top-table standing. Apart from the obvious in Real Mardid and Barca, most teams here are very good, so there is no shortage of entertaining matches. Passionate regional pride (e.g. Real Madrid vs Atlético Madrid or Barcelona vs Espanyol) fuels the intensity of matches. That is an argument as to why the Spanish National team falters in crowd support on the World Cup level - because many Spanish folks, traditionally, focus regionally instead of nationally. Read the history of the Basques, Iberians and Catalans for more understanding. It is utter blasphemy/betrayal when a prized player transfers between rival teams (e.g. Luis Figo from Barca to Real Madrid) and scoreline trashings between these teams are barely forgotten. I try to focus on the quality of the game itself - not the emotions behind it, but the emotion about it. On GOL TV, having Ray Hudson as a commentator helps :)
Camp Nou - the stadium of FC Barcelona
I am an FC Barcelona fan because of their free-flowing creativity, invention and technique that make them a joy to watch and that arouse enduring feelings about the sport for me. For me, it is the team that epitomizes "Total Football" - where one player of a certain position can play in another just as effectively. In Carlos Puyol and Xavi Herndandez are two individuals possibly best in the world in their positions (Defence and Playmaking). Lionel Messi. Ya Ya Toure. Thierry Henry. Zlatan Ibrahimovic and Seydou Keita. FC Barcelona seems to be one team that a lot of other teams aspire to. Their youth system is among the finest. Rivals Real Madrid boast and have boasted some of my favourite players, and are one of the best teams out there. From 2002-2008, it had been difficult picking a side when Real Madrid and Barcelona played one another...but I think true appreciation for the game came in not doing so.
Other teams: Sevilla, Valencia, Deportivo and Atletico are all class. La Liga's top teams are dotted with top talent from Spain, South America, Africa and Europe...so familiar faces and skill techniques are bound to be found when World Cup time comes and players return to play for their nations.
English Premier League teams:
Arsenal -- Aston Villa -- Birmingham City -- Blackburn Rovers -- Bolton Wanderers -- Burnley -- Chelsea -- Everton -- Fulham -- Hull City -- Liverpool -- Manchester City -- Manchester United -- Portsmouth -- Stoke City -- Sunderland -- Tottenham Hotspur -- West Ham United -- Wigan Athletic -- Wolverhampton Wanderers
In North America we're likely to have easiest access to English Premier League football with basic cable. The alluring, entertaining camera angles, the household-name players and the propriety of English commentary makes one very comfortable with the league.
Games are typically very fast-paced and physical. There's more fouling and yellow cards than other leagues. The regional rivalries are not as deeply entrenched as in Spain, but are taken seriously, most notably Liverpool/Manchester City vs Manchester United, Arsenal vs Manchester United, Everton vs Liverpool. Throw in Chelsea in any of those too. Out-of-stadia rioting and pub fights are common, among the more thuggish fans. Otherwise the pub atmosphere can be celebratory and festive if a good game (with more neutral sentiments) is on. Club-loyalties are largely forgotten when England is on the world stage.
The top teams - Manchester United, Chelsea, Arsenal and Liverpool - have excellent players, managers and technical staff, ensuring top-level table performances consistently. All four teams frequently qualify for the Champions League in Europe. Multimillionaire foreign ownership of these four teams ensure marketability, top-level performances and heavy generation of income (unfair to the lower-table teams). The latest of this is the Manchester City project by its Abu Dhabi owners -- that seems to be floundering despite all the super-players in the team. The hiring of Roberto Mancini (former Inter Milan coach) may change that.
Chelsea's Frankie Lamps and Arsenal's Cesc Fabregas
However, my emphasis is on the football itself. The top four teams are very entertaining to watch, Arsenal perhaps most of all. They are creative and free flowing. Think Cesc Fabregas, Robin van Persie, William Gallas under Arsene Wenger. Liverpool is rough and tumble, with Steven Gerrard (Captain Fantastic), Fernando Torres, Ryan Babel and Dirk Kuyt. Chelsea very organized and efficient yet with some flair: Michael Ballack, Deco, Frank Lampard, Malouda and Michael Essien...under former Milan coach Ancelotti. Finally, Manchester United perhaps a combination of all: the ageless Ryan Giggs and Paul Scholes, Wayne Rooney, Ji Sung Park, Nani, Michael Owen, Gary Neville and Nemanja Vidic. And someone give Alex Ferguson a chewing-gum commercial contract.
Campeonato Brasileiro Série A teams: see above.
I'm afraid I don't have GOL TV anymore, which allowed an inkling of coverage from this league. I think of this league, and somewhere between the amazing visuals of the Brazilian spectators, the brilliant players that leave the league and return to it; and the knowledge that this was the country where football was not invented but mastered, I feel as if I am missing out immensely.
Especially as I have seen some games and some passing moves that leave me in wonder.
The finest Brazilian players in Europe have plied their trades initially at Brazilian clubs. Real Madrid's Kaka at Sao Paulo. Manchester City's Robinho at Santos. AC Milan's Ronaldinho at Gremio and many, many others.
Heck, even the naturalized Brazilian players playing for other countries, i.e. Deco for Portugal, Marcos Senna for Spain have started out in the Brazilian league.
A cross-section of the enormous Estádio do Maracanã in Rio de Janeiro.
It is sad that even the Spanish/Portuguese/Latino stations don't show more coverage of this league. I have been reading and following up a lot on it however, wherever I can and now moreso that Ronaldo (the original), Adriano and Roberto Carlos have returned.
Yes, the Phenomenon Ronaldo has returned to his native Brazil - playing for Corinthians - after a ridiculously glorious career with both the national team and PSV Eidhoven, FC Barcelona, Inter Milan, Real Madrid and AC Milan. Injury prone as he is, his love for the game prevents his retirement and he is now Corinthian's top scorer, doing the business as usual. The only footballer to put a smile on my face :)
Point is: if you have access to this league, WATCH IT.
Bundesliga. Sounds fun to say.
Germany's top league features the following teams:
Bayer Leverkusen -- FC Bayern Munich -- Vfl Bochum -- Borussia Dortmund -- Borussia
Mönchengladbach -- Eintracht Frankfurt -- SC Freiburg -- Hamburger SV -- Hannover SV -- Hannover 96 -- Hertha Berlin -- TSG 1899 Hoffenheim -- FC Koln -- FSV Mainz -- FC Nuremberg -- FC Shalke -- VfB Stuttgart -- SV Werder Bremen -- Vfl Wolfsburg.
FC Bayern Munich first put me onto greater awareness of the Bundesliga. Watching the magnificent Oliver Kahn in the 2002 World Cup, I had to see the quality of team that the then best goalkeeper in the world played for. And it was a fantastic team: players like Roque Santa Cruz, Roy Makaay, Owen Hargreaves, Lucio and Luca Toni have all plied their trades there.
Canadian Paul Stalteri played for Werder Bremen and now Monchengladbach - another reason I kept up to date with them.
Two or three Bundesliga teams usually feature in the Champions League. It is a league still forming its identity, dotted with familiar players that will be seen at this World Cup. Players from Africa and South America produce a lot of flair and creativity, juxtaposed with the sturdy and reliable technique of local German players.
