Blatter has Premier League doubts
Fifa president Sepp Blatter is worried that the Premier League's worldwide appeal is damaging the global game.
"I have my concerns because the Premier League is the strongest in the world, definitely," he told BBC Radio 5 Live.
"It is taking over in such a manner that the other leagues have difficulties to match it."
Blatter also believes that the England's top flight has an unhealthy imbalance of power, with only a handful of clubs contesting the title.
"In a competition where two-thirds or three-quarters of the participants in the league play not to be first, but not to be relegated, there is something wrong," he added.
Since the formation of the Premier League in 1992 there have only been four different winners, compared to six different champions over the previous 16 seasons.
Blatter is also concerned about the influx of foreign players and owners into England's top clubs that has accompanied the Premier League's runaway commercial success.
He said he would attempt to convince Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore to impose a minimum requirement for home-grown talent on the pitch and warned that domestic owners might provide better stewardship through the economic downturn.
"I want to try to, if not persuade him (Richard Scudamore), then at least influence him in his thoughts that to have a minimum of local players will enhance the quality of his league," he said.
"Foreign ownership is definitely a risk, it is not the basis of football, but here we can do nothing.
"At the moment in the economic crisis, maybe the big investors and the big companies, will have less money to go in than local or regional investors who will be there because they identify themselves with the club."
And Blatter warned that England's bid to host the 2018 World Cup, a key part of a so-called "golden decade" of sport for the UK, faced serious competition.
Nine other expressions of interest have been made, with Russia and joint bids from Spain and Portugal and the Netherlands and Belgium making up the competition from the rest of Europe.
"What is the advantage of England?" said Blatter.
"If you look at the the technical infrastructure for stadiums and the organisation of football matches on the level of 50,000 people and upwards then they are ready to organise it, but they are not the only one."
What a tool. Does he really think the teams in the bottom third or half of Serie A and La Liga play to win the league and don't care about relegation!?!?!?
I think he's guilty, as he accuses the world, of being fixated with the Premiership. Football is the same in ANY division, in the Championship some sides contend the title/automatic promotion (Birmingham, Wolves and Reading), some target the play-offs while most of the rest fight for survival. Most teams in the Premiership may not set out to win the league, they know it is unlikely to happen, but does Blatter think all the teams in Spain set out to win the league regardless of how unlikely they are to succeed?!?!?
He's repeating a popular myth about our league somehow being uncompetitive, it's no more true than is the case in most top European Leagues.
Champions 03/04-07/08
England (3) - Arsenal 03/04, Chelsea 04/05 & 05/06, Man Utd 06/07 & 07/08
Italy (3) - AC Milan 03/04, Inter Milan 06/07 & 07/08, Juventus 04/05 & 05/06*
Spain (3) - Valencia 03/04, Barcelona 04/05 & 05/06, Real Madrid 06/07 & 07/08
France (1) - Lyon 03/04, 04/05, 05/06, 06/07 & 07/08
Germany (3) - Werder Bremen 03/04, Bayern Munich 04/05, 05/06 & 07/08, Stuttgart 06/07
Holland (2) - Ajax 03/04, PSV Eindhoven 04/05, 05/06, 06/07 & 07/08
Portugal (2) - FC Porto 03/04, 05/06, 06/07 & 07/08, Benfica 04/05
*called-off due to the Calciopli scam, but Juve topped the table so for these purposes they are given the titles (tokenly) AC Milan finished 2nd both times
What a shocker, all leagues have few teams winning the title. And if England is supposedly bad for few teams contesting the title, why doesn't he focus on FRANCE, where Lyon have won it five years in a row, or SCOTLAND where two teams contest the title, the next few for UEFA places and the rest are happy to stay solvent and avoid relegation.
Of course he may be regarding the much mentioned 'big four', well let's see if Serie A and La Liga are more open - I seriously doubt it as I type.
Top Four Finishers 03/04-07/08
England (5) - Man Utd 5, Chelsea 5, Arsenal 5, Liverpool 4, Everton 1
Italy (7*) - Inter Milan 5, AC Milan 4, Juventus 4, Roma 3, Fiorentina 2, Udinese 1, Lazio 1
Spain (7) - Barcelona 5, Real Madrid 5, Valencia 3, Sevilla 3, Villareal 2, Deportivo La Coruna 1, Real Betis 1
*Juventus relegated so that would have probably been only six if they hadn't been
I'm sure Septic Bladder is unlikely to target any league outside the 'big three', they may well be more open in terms of top four finishers, but that could be as much down to lack of quality as being "more open". If you discount the one offs it is England 4, Italy 5 and Spain 5 - big difference. In fact it shows Spain has a 'big two' and Italy three, maybe four, big teams who finish there or thereabouts every year. Even if I extended the top fours to other leagues, I doubt it would be much different.
up. No one was moaning when the English clubs were dominating in previous years or then the Spanish teams or Italian teams.
