When the English Premier League was formed in 1992 it was to much hype and fanfare. Sky TV’s self-promotion machine doing all it can, with promises to ‘re-invent’ football, and to help launch the league and its clubs into the 21st Century using their huge financial investment. They delivered, to some extent. At the time English football was lagging when it came to making the major signings on the continent. The ban from European competition from the mid- 80’s onwards hadn’t helped, setting the league back drastically, pushing the powerbase of European football firmly over to Italy.
From this period until around the end of the century, Italian football was king – the continents glamour league. The majority of the world’s greatest players plied their trade in Serie A, happy to not only be receiving a handsome wage and excellent quality of life, but also the prestige of playing in what was seen as the pinnacle of league football, worldwide. As the 90’s wore on however, the balance of power slowly started to drift west in Europe. Spain’s La Liga always attracted great players, due in no small part to two of the world’s biggest clubs residing there; Barcelona and Real Madrid. But rising again was also the English Premier League.
Of course, England is home to some of the world’s best known and well supported clubs worldwide, but the lack of European competition had set those teams back and saw other leagues gain in status. However, with the new influx of money coming into the ‘newly formed’ league, they could now start to offer riches in comparison to Europe’s other top clubs, and in some cases, offer more. Slowly but surely, more and more famous foreign players started to make their way to these shores. Initially there were two major types: 1. Players who were coming to the end of their careers and wanted to gain one last big pay-day, whilst sampling the culture of playing in ‘the home of football’ (the likes of Gullit, Klinsmann and Vialli), and 2. Players who had made a name for themselves in their respective countries (Zola, Ravanelli, Ginola and Di Canio), but were not quite held in the same esteem as many of the leagues other stars, so decided to gain better deals in England whilst possibly being more appreciated.
This effect snowballed and during the dawn of the new century, these foreign ‘stars’ had been joined by an outstanding crop of home-grown English talent that became world famous stars in their own right. The Premier League, along with La Liga, was now seen as the place to be, with Italy’s Serie A being finally overtaken in the glamour stakes. Now players looked to move to England and Spain – with England having the one great advantage: money.
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Not only had a vast amount of foreign players invaded our shores, but not long after came the foreign investors and owners. Keen to capitalise on the Premier League brand, these owners brought not only millions but BILLIONS of pounds, which no other European league could match. The Premier League now not only had the glamour, but the financial might to go alongside it. Many of the world’s best players flocked to England, and with media giants Sky TV pushing ‘The World’s Greatest League’ mantra, many believed it to be so.
However as the first decade of the new century drew to a close, there were signs that the gloss on the self-promoting Premier League was starting to wear off. When Cristiano Ronaldo left for Real Madrid, football fans were left with no doubt that the best two players in the world now resided in Spain. Messi, the world’s greatest, plays for what many currently consider to be the world’s greatest team, Barcelona, as do many other star players. The Spanish national team is currently Word and European Champions, playing an enchanting style of football which all adds to the countries pulling power domestically. England’s outstanding home-grown talents have failed to deliver what was once promised on the international stage, and many have possibly past their peaks domestically, without establishing European domination at club level. Even David Beckham’s own style of ‘glamorous’ self-promotion has long left these shores!
So this summer with Carlos Tevez and Cesc Fabregas, two of the biggest names left in the league also looking to leave, are we coming to the end of the Premier League’s cycle as the pinnacle of the domestic leagues? Or has the Premier League ever really stood on its own, in being ‘The World’s Greatest League’? Come to your own conclusions…just don’t ask Sky TV!
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