A longitudinal and comparative analysis of competitive balance in five European football leagues

Purpose This paper aims to provide empirical evidence on competitive balance in the 'big five' European football leagues; namely the English Premier League, French Ligue 1, German Bundesliga, Italian Serie A and Spanish La Liga. Design/Methodology/Approach Our paper utilises recognised measures of competitive balance to measure levels of concentration (within-season competitive balance) and dominance (between-season competitive balance) in the selected leagues over 22 seasons between 1995/96 and 2016/17. Findings Ligue 1 emerged as the most balanced league in terms of both concentration and dominance measures. Our analysis also points to a statistically significant decline in competitive balance in all leagues apart from Serie A (Italy). Originality/Value The findings of this study are concerning for league organisers. Competition intensity is a key component of a sport league and a league that is dominated by one or a select few clubs is less attractive within the marketplace. This paper presents challenges at league governance level for the five leagues examined.