Three of top five leagues are owned by one team

[gary69]

And it's definitely not comparing apples and apples because in the NA system, a promotion/relegation system would never be implemented, so a minor league team will pretty much always be a minor league team.

And it's impossible to have a draft system even within the EU, let alone all of Europe with so many leagues. No league would accept a free draft (or that the worst placed nations/leagues/teams in UEFA coefficients would be able to draft first). Imagine Messi being forced to sign a 5-year entry level contract for a bottom team in Andorra/San Marino league as a 16-18 -year old.

It's totally different in the NA were everything is geared towards one league.

 

[Lambo]

Because they’ve been poorly run.

With the result that Schalke's economic opportunities are now very limited.

 

[bleedblue1223]

And it's impossible to have a draft system even within the EU, let alone all of Europe with so many leagues. No league would accept a free draft (or that the worst placed nations/leagues/teams in UEFA coefficients would be able to draft first). Imagine Messi being forced to sign a 5-year entry level contract for a bottom team in Andorra/San Marino league as a 16-18 -year old.

It's totally different in the NA were everything is geared towards one league.

Completely agree. The only NA system that could be applied, and it sort of it, but not really is what MLB does with international signings. There are some restrictions on what clubs can do with youth, it's what led to Chelsea's transfer ban, but it's not like clubs are only allocated a limited amount of funds to be able to spend to the same degree that happens in MLB. So, even if you did what baseball where domestic prospects are drafted, and international is a free for all, you could never get a draft order with a pro/rel league.

 

[The Abusement Park]

With the result that Schalke's economic opportunities are now very limited.

Because they've been run very poorly. They bring in the 3rd most revenue in the league, that means that they're doing something wrong and losing a lot of money.

 

[Albatros]

Yeha, the CL era. Where you can get wrecked by Bordeaux and still go through because ROUND ROBIN.
Where you can finish 2nd in your league and still play the C1.

Understand now?

Eh? Limiting participants to champions only would be of only minor benefit to the perennial champions like FC Bayern and Juventus, but hurt severely the ones below like Leverkusen, Roma, Valencia and Lyon.

Biggest winners would be Salzburg, Qarabag, Astana, Ludogorets, APOEL.

 

[Evilo]

But since before the CL format it wasn't always the same team winning your logic fails.

 

[Albatros]

FC Bayern won 7 titles between 1980 and 1990 as well. The 1970s were a duopoly between FC Bayern and Gladbach.

 

[Evilo]

Yep and a duo doesn't get both teams rich like right now

 

[Albatros]

If only money was the primary limiting factor in Germany, sadly mismanagement tends to occur regardless of it.

 

[Stray Wasp]

The most ridiculously top heavy league in the world regardless of overall strength would have to be Scotland: No club besides Celtic or R*****s has won the league since Fergie's Aberdeen side did it in 1985. If you think about it as great as what he accomplished at Old Trafford was his greatest accomplishment is arguably winning 3 league titles with Aberdeen and beating Barca to win a Cup Winners Cup.

Pedant's corner: while I agree with you that what Ferguson achieved with Aberdeen at the least equals what he managed at Old Trafford, it was Real Madrid they beat in the Cup Winners' Cup final. (The Dons did for Bayern in the quarters, too, having twice trailed in the decisive second leg).

Funnily enough, what has been the Old Firm's longest period of sustained dominance over the Scottish league was immediately preceded by the worst spell of sustained failure in their history - three seasons in a row beginning with 82/83, Celtic and Rangers won not one league between them, thanks to Jim McLean's Dundee United and Ferguson's Aberdeen.

Your post reminded me that the year the losing streak broke, 85/86, Hearts threw away the title on the final day, losing at Dundee when a draw would have made them champions. And Hearts entered that fateful game unbeaten in 27. With that, the duopoly gained its tightest ever hold.