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Premier League is often regarded as ‘The greatest show on the planet’. With its broadcast network in more than 212 territories to almost 643 million homes, it has an approximate viewership of 4.7 billion worldwide.
Its colossal reach can be estimated by the fact that it is watched by almost 62% of the total people on the earth which makes it the most watched football league in the world. Football is the most popular sport but what makes Premier League stands out as an undisputed leader among its more than 200 compatriots? Let us find out:
#1 History and Stature of Football Clubs
All 20 football clubs in the Premier League 2018-19 season are more than 100 years old. These clubs not only have a huge legacy behind but they also have generations of followership.
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As some of the first football clubs were set up in the United Kingdom, they are well known to most of the people. 100 years ago, Britain also had several colonies throughout the world. They not only introduced the beautiful sport to their colonies but also major the football clubs of their original land. It is due to this reason, the Premier League is recognizable worldwide.
#2 Competitiveness
Premier League was founded in the year 1992 and since then six different clubs have won it. Among these, four clubs namely Manchester United (13), Chelsea (5), Arsenal (3) and Manchester City (3) have lifted the trophy more than once.
Among all major leagues throughout the world, no league has such a distribution of power. The battle for the top four spots for Champions League qualification is even more enticing. With all the money flow in the lucrative Premier League, there has been a major shift in power.
Now clubs like Tottenham and Everton are rubbing shoulders equally with the big five clubs: Manchester United, Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester City. The competition is not only limited to the top end of the table but it is equally tantalizing at the bottom as well.
Relegation battles are often extended till the last day of the season. The competitiveness and unpredictability of this league draw an extra attention of the viewers.
#3 Best Players and Managers of the world
In the recently finished FIFA World Cup 2018, Premier League had the maximum participation of players. 108 players participating in the World Cup were squad members of Premier League clubs.
LaLiga was its nearest competitor with 78 participants in the football mega event at Russia. With the highest sum of great World Cup players glamorizing the English soil, Premier league becomes the centre of consideration for football enthusiasts.
At present, Premier League possesses the costliest goalkeeper (Kepa Arrizabalaga) and the most expensive defender (Virgil Van Dijk). The top flight in English Football has often broken the transfer records in the past with Paul Pogba and Romelu Lukaku being some of the latest ones.
The mammoth global reach of the Premier League also attracts the most tactical managers to work for the English Clubs. The most recent instance is Nuno Espirito Santo, who left Champions League Club, FC Proto to sign for championship side, Wolverhampton Wanderers a year ago.
Now he is sharing his trade with the giant clubs in the top tier of English football.
#4 Goals and tempo of the matches
The most exciting thing about football are the goals. As of now in the 2018-19 Premier League season, a total of 90 matches have been played. Even with top strikers like Kane, Salah and Lukaku being out of form, the Premier League teams have collectively netted 251 goals.
With an average of 2.79 goals per match Premier League is only second to Bundesliga in terms of goals per game. In general, the tempo of games in the English top tier is very high. Whether it is Klopp’s high pressing Liverpool team or Guardiola’s tiki-taka Manchester City almost all the teams of the league are equally entertaining.
The heat of the games is too high and there are very fewer games that end in a goalless draw. This season only 7 matches out of total 90 have finished in a 0-0 stalemate (7.78% matches).
#5 Finances and lucrative structure
The English top flight is by far the most lucrative league in the world. Last season 20 teams split the pot of £2.42 Billion according to their TV broadcasting rights and final positions in the league. On one hand, both the Manchester Clubs received just under £150 Million.
On the other hand, the relegated clubs Stoke, Swansea and West Bromwich Albion also received £98.8 Million, £98.5 Million and £94.6 Million respectively.
It is interesting to note that the amount received by these relegated clubs is just less than the amount received by Bayern Munich on winning the Bundesliga. These figures show how lucrative is the Premier League.
It is this abundant cash flow to various clubs in the English top tier that makes them capable to afford best players of the world. Hence, making the league more exciting, competitive and attractive.
#6 Broadcast timings
Unlike Champions League, the broadcast timings of Premier League are suitable for many densely populated countries like India and China. The matches can be seen during the weekends in a time window of 5.00 PM to 12.00 midnight.
The best thing about these timings is that football enthusiasts don’t have to sacrifice their nap to watch their favourite teams play. It also suits the upcoming generation and school going kids hence ensuring the viewership for the future. The adults can also spend their weekends in sports café, bars and pubs watching their teams while having a pint of beer and dinner.
#7 Most cosmopolitan league
On 11 August 2018, Neil Etheridge became the first player from the Philippines to play in the Premier League when he represented Cardiff City Football Club this season. As of now, players from 109 out of 207 FIFA affiliate nations have graced the biggest national football league of the world.
Due to its cosmopolitan nature, the Premier League is able to penetrate into some of the least known countries as well like Armenia (Henrikh Mkhitaryan - Arsenal), Benin (Rudy Gestade – Aston Villa), Burkina Faso (Bertrand Traore - Chelsea), Gabon (Aubameyang - Arsenal), Kenya (Wanyama – Spurs), etc.
The participation of footballers from around the world has definitely added extra numbers to Premier League’s ever-growing viewership numbers. This multinational nature is not only limited to players, now there are more foreign CEOs and owners of the English football clubs ranging from the countries like Malaysia, China, UAE, Russia, USA, etc.
#8 Brilliance in Broadcast
The creativity, excellence, workforce and skill level of the production crew of Premier League is responsible for the ultimate viewer’s experience. A team of commentators consisting of Peter Drury, Jon Champion, Jim Beglin, Martin Tyler and many others is regarded as the voice of the English top tier.
Their vocabulary, preparation, style of commentary, knowledge of the game and the variation of pitch according to the tempo of the game is unparalleled. Apart from the commentary department, the camera and technologies used in the Premier League also provide an extra edge to its global broadcast.
Prime Live match experience is exaggerated by equally detailed, efficient and intriguing pre and post-match shows. Various other shows like Premier League Netbursters, PL Today and PL Preview shows leave no stone unturned in keeping the excitement levels high during the weekdays.
#9 Fantasy Premier League
Fantasy Premier League aka FPL is not an unknown term for most of the Premier League followers. This fantasy competition with real prizes allows a participant to prepare a team of 15 players from all 20 clubs of the Premier League.
Every week the competitor is awarded points on the basis of performances of its players. The total points tally decides league position of a fantasy manager. The competition runs for the entire duration of the season.
It is immensely popular worldwide with more than 5.7 Million fantasy managers including some noticeable names. Former England pacer and captain, Stuart Broad is one of many high profile FPL managers. It is a highly addictive competition which makes watching the Premier League even more absorbing.
#10 Promotional events
Live Premier League screening, Premier League Trophy tour, and PL Asia Trophy are some of the international promotional events of the English top tier. It not only provides the premier league experience to various distant places of the world but it also brings the premier league followers under one single roof.
Live Premier League screening and Premier League Trophy tour give its followers an opportunity to witness and interact with legends of the past. It also acts as a catalyst in the development of the fan base through the addition of new followers. These events are very popular in India and they often take place in metro cities like Delhi, Mumbai, and Bangalore.
Premier League Asia Trophy is a bi-yearly pre-season competition which brings some Premier League clubs half world across to Asia. It provides its fans a chance to watch the top English teams play live in front of their eyes.
Arsenal, Liverpool, Chelsea, Manchester City, and Tottenham Hotspur are some of its past participants. Since its foundation in 2003, it has happened in Malaysia, Hong Kong, China, Thailand, and Singapore contributing Premier League huge chunk of new followers in these countries.
