IT is becoming very clear that in 2025-26, the Premier League has the best opportunity to show the rest of Europe it is by far the strongest competition among the continent’s top leagues. Six teams in the last 16 of the Champions League is the sort of domination that Brazil might enjoy in South America’s Copa Libertadores, but while Brazil and Argentina have significantly more depth in their domestic leagues than their continental peers, the Premier has at least three major competitors.
If an English team does not win the Champions League this season, questions should be asked. The Premier is the richest league and its clubs are more resourced than the rest of Europe, so much so that six of the top 10 revenue generating clubs in Europe are English and nine of the top 10 earners of TV money are from the Premier League.
In 2025-26, the Premier League has had nine clubs participating in Europe – that’s 45% of the entire division. The other “big five” countries had seven apiece. Furthermore, the Champions League situation suggests the Premier is taking last 16 places away from the likes of France, Germany, Italy and Spain. In the past decade, England have gone from an average of 3.5 teams per year in the last 16 to 3.8, while the others have declined slightly. England, this season, have twice as many clubs in the 16 than Spain and three times the total from the Bundesliga. Italy are currently in a worrying position with just one team- Atalanta – still involved. Italy’s clubs have been eliminated by Galatasaray and Bodø/Glimt, while Napoli didn’t finish high enough in the league phase to qualify for the last 16 play-off.
At present, some of the big guns of Europe appear to be weaker than they have in recent years; Real Madrid and Barcelona are certainly less dynamic and Serie A clubs seem to be very welcoming for players travelling down the ladder of their careers. France cannot keep pace with the Premier, with the exception of Paris Saint-Germain, whose Qatari backing compensates for their very mediocre TV revenues. On the evidence of their form in their domestic competitions and the Champions League, Arsenal and Bayern Munich are arguably the best teams in Europe in 2025-26.
There were 102 meetings between “big five” clubs in the league phase of the Champions League, the results of which demonstrate the relative strength of the leagues. The Premier League had a win rate of 66% with just six defeats in 29 games. This was far better than Spain (35%), France (33%), Germany (32%) and Italy (25%).
Of the last 16 in the Champions League, five teams are currently top of their leagues, a list that includes Bayern, Arsenal, Barcelona, Paris Saint-Germain and Galatasaray. Thirteen are in the top six, with the lowest placed teams from the Premier, Newcastle United and Tottenham Hotspur, who are 11th and 16th respectively.
The draw for the last 16: Paris Saint-Germain v Chelsea; Galatasaray v Liverpool; Real Madrid v Manchester City; Atalanta v Bayern Munich; Newcastle United v Barcelona; Atlético Madrid v Tottenham Hotspur; Bodø/Glimt v Sporting; and Bayer Leverkusen v Arsenal.
Game of the People was founded in 2012 and is ranked among the 100 best football websites by various sources. The site consistently wins awards for its work, across a broad range of subjects. [View all posts by Neil Fredrik Jensen](https://gameofthepeople.com/author/georgefjord/)