As a German I would love to see the US implement a proper league system for football. That would generate an immense number of new quality players and probably also new tactics innovations.

For American footy to improve there has to be better grassroots. Every Sunday league should be registered in the grand scheme. We need an fa cup style. It’s a simple idea but who wouldn’t love the idea of an MLS side coming to their local park. We 100% need it.

Football in England has changed drastically over the last 25 years. Players at Premier League-level in the 1990s is now commonplace at non-league level! The quality of players across all divisions today is remarkable.

it's always tough comparing things that don't have metrics that square up. I think you did a pretty good job of stacking the leagues up. There will always be people from the rest of the world that will downgrade US soccer, but I think you make a good case for where the leagues fall.

What an incredible breakdown! I love that you used a variety of metric and also player perspective! Fantastic job, definitely by far the best breakdown I've seen on the subject!

Really tough topic to make a video on, but this was excellent. Well done Matt, keep up the great work!

Really enjoyed this video! I think you summed it up pretty accurately. I do believe that the Championship overall is a higher level than the MLS though. Different styles of football though! The championship is brutal!

I really enjoyed this and think your final thoughts are perfectly reasonable. I like how you did it in tiers which recognizes there are levels within each league.

Thanks Matt for the insight into the leagues and criteria you used. Your content is enjoyable and always useful.

First time seeing one of your videos - loved it! Clear, concise and data driven. I used to play non league here in England and the standard are absolutely incredible, the English football pyramid is near perfect for producing talent

Great Matt! Your thoughts are really detailed and I think fair enough. So nice to learn from how you evaluate everything.

Great Video Matt! Would also be interesting to see the comparison between Germany and the US professional leagues

Great breakdown. Thanks for putting in the work on that. Sounds reasonable to me.

Your summary makes sense to me. The level of the top Championship teams is insane, possibly better than the bottom Premiership teams. MLS is a great league - really entertaining games.

Is an interesting discussion, I couldn't argue with your final breakdown. I watch them all to various levels, it's incredible time to be a fan as far as the coverage goes

This falls in line with what I had always thought just on my own observations. Great Vid.

Very difficult to compare but I think you did a great job. I’m English but I’ve watched a fair amount of MLS and I’d say this looks fair. The quality of leagues in England is surprisingly strong. If you ever find an interview from a player who has dropped down the divisions, either as they got older or when they were released from Premier League academies at a young age, they are very often surprised at the quality of play in the leagues below the PL or even the Championship.

Interesting to hear these comparisons from the players perspective! I’ve had Brits visit to see a Hartford athletic game before and described the vibe as higher table national league with an Americanized feel, also considering how a former tranmere player did there. so it’s awesome hearing that players are considering it higher up like Lg1 or Lg2!

Great video! Comparing different leagues is an interesting topic!

Fair statements. Great job putting this together. Thank you for the information and transparency.

Loved this as I am a fan favorite of Aston Villa but always wondered where salaries and levels worked out. Now to find your video on all the other leagues matching up to the EPL.

Having watched a lot of MLS games, its definitely getting a lot better. At the minute, I would actually put it at the top of League One. I would say that its around the standard of Ipswich, Sheffield Wednesday, and Derby County.

Brilliant breakdown! That was a riveting piece of research. Thank you for your hard work.

patiently waiting for your vlog champ.

Love these data driven videos! It would be awesome if you did more like this, such as looking into player movement and action data (more touches in the opponent half equals better forward and etc.).

This is really interesting, great video! I've watched a lot of the Championship and MLS over the years and I've always thought MLS teams would probably fall somewhere around the bottom of the championship to the top half of League One. MLS has grown a lot recently and the standard is improving quickly but the Championship is also just pretty insane overall and super competitive. They're both quality leagues, probably both a little underrated!

Brilliant video on a topic I was always very curios about. Broke it down really well and clearly put a lot of work into it

I like effort gone into this video! Totally agree with your final thoughts too.

Great vid man. Such a hard comparison but I think you nailed it. The top championship teams are above the MLS. The example of Johnny Russell, used to be a good winger for a top championship team in derby county, becoming a very good winger in the MLS (in his first season or two atleast). The quality drops of significantly in the league 1/2 space, where I think alot of MLS/USLC players could play technically, though the physicality at this level sadly can drown out good technical players.

appreciate the editing. It must take at least 8 hours to make this 8 min video.

I think your analysis and conclusions are excellent, thank you for the video

Great video, I think your breakdown is pretty reasonable. I've often wondered how they stacked up and am pleasantly surprised to see the MLS right up there with Championship

Good summary, US football is often derided but it's come a long way. The championship is no joke!

I'm a Brit living in Atlanta for 15 years. Didn't watch much MLS before Atlanta got a team, but seen quite a lot now. Hard to compare for many reasons, but I'm inclined to agree with those folks who put the MLS alongside League One rather than Championship. To me the big difference is the standard of defending. Very poor in the MLS, and made to look worse since the most talented (designated) players tend to be attacking. If any team actually invested in older lower Prem or championship (or European league equivalent) defenders I believe they would be much stronger than the teams that throw all their money at attacking players. If Wrexham come and play some games next year it will be interesting to see how they compete. Not a typical National League team by any means, and playing pre-season friendlies is not an accurate barometer, but I think they will shock a few MLS teams/fans.

Love all the stats and data used. Really cool video!

Nicely done. Gut feel says to me you are pretty much spot on!

American attendance numbers are inflated. They report tickets sold as attendance, so all season ticket holders are reported as attending even if they don't. Red Bulls was reported to have an average attendance of 16k last year, but in reality it's usually around 5-9k per game in the stands. I'm not sure about England, but not all countries count attendance that way.

Cool video I really enjoyed it, especially seeing the attendance stats for the MLS. I don't know much about the MLS but I was sat thinking (as an English person who thought you were going to say in-between prem and champ throughout the video) that I would be surprised if any MLS team would beat Burnley at the top of championship (no disrespect of course) or even my team, Middlesbrough (UTB) who are in 3rd and going really well right now. I would personally maybe go a little lower by 5-7 places with the assessment (24 teams in the champ) because in my opinion, while the prem is probably the best league in the world, the champ is probably considered up there with the hardest league, and there are some really good and well established teams in it that are like one or two decent players away from pushing promotion.

This was incredibly well done

Keep up the great videos Matthew!!

The problem with MLS is that the strict salary caps mean terrible trouble with squad depth and quality. The quality dropoff from a DP attacker (and pretty much any other starter, regardless if they're a DP) and the next man up in that position is enormous, much larger than in other leagues with less restrictive financial rules. Just look at Atlanta United this last weekend when they were without Almada, Giakoumakis, and Miles Robinson (as well as several other players who were all away with their national teams). After a hot start of three wins and one draw, they got trounced 6-1 by a technically weaker Columbus side, because all the backups who had to play for ATL were demonstrably poorer in skill/ability.

really enjoyed this, how would different college leagues compare going down into english semi pro leagues?

I like your final thoughts. Very thoughtful!

Very well put together vid thanks for this man

I remember Landon Donovan saying ten years ago that the MLS was upper League One (English third tier) and bottom of championship (second tier). The English league has strengthened since then as it is furth£r and furth£r ahead of other major European national leagues

USL is awsome, they broadcast all their games for free on youtube and the level is decent, last's year's finale was one of the better matches I saw that year.

Great data and straight to the point! Take my like 👍

ngl actually a brilliant video with great graphics thank you Matt ! love from india ❤

If the premiere was so good, you’d think England would have won a World Cup. 😂

There are championship sides stronger than teams in the top division of Europe’s top 5 leagues. I’d also say the same about certain league one sides currently. English leagues are so well balanced even compared to European nations. The third and fourth divisions in countries like Germany, Spain, France, Italy is almost nonexistent compared to England’s league one and two. Even conference in England is a pretty high standard.

Muy buen análisis mi estimado, nuevo seguidor a partir de ahora, sigue asi

Great analysis, really interesting to see how they compare 👍

Something that you didn't consider in the salaries section, was that the MLS is sort of considered the Florida of leagues. It's where players in the Euro leagues go when they would otherwise retire, lured in by inflated wages for an easy pay-day. Those inflated salaries boost what might otherwise be a middle-tier league.

Absolutely delusional! The USL would be the same level as the Northern Premier League in England. Those 5 friends are just being polite to you and not wanting to hurt your feelings. The standard in League 2 in England is ridiculous. They’re class, it’s a completely different standard to what you play in - it’s not even comparable!

I think you summation of the leagues relative merits is fairly accurate, not going to argue with it; good overall analysis.

Very impressive method. Nice job!

It's funny how the Brits rate MLS higher than the one American. It's just a sample size but speaks to the perspectives I've found where some Americans because of our historical inferiority complex mentally we put Euro football on a higher pedestal. So it's interesting seeing the Brits coming from a different perspective rate MLS higher.

This is probably where I would have put them before even watching this video. I like the way it's broken down, especially with actual players perspectives too.

Love this bro

Having lives in the US for 7 years now I miss my beloved plymouth argyle beyond compare.. with plymouth I got to experience the entirety of the pyramid for the most part. Also watched the prem on TV as standard. I've since watched the MLS the US open USL league 2 and will attend my first USL league 1 match in the coming weeks... the difficulty with comparing the leagues is almost impossible when you look at just how different the competitions are. The travel time here in the US is a huge factor but then the sheer number of games in England is also another huge factor to consider. As far as standard of play I would agree that for the most part MLS sits at a championship level. A few MLS teams might break into the prem but only in the same way a few championship teams can and will because of promotion.. on that not US soccer as a whole would vastly improve by introducing promotion and relegation.. even if it was merely 1 team up 1 team down each season. Competition drives results and competition throughout the league, top AND bottom, separates the wheat from the chaff. From what I've seen of USL championship for the most part I would rate it bottom end of league 1 and maybe playoff level league 2. USL1 as the first level of pro football here is actually probably a higher standard than the national league which is the first pro level in England. I can't believe some of the leagues the teams can pull players from in USL1. They probably sit at playoff level national conference to mid table league 2. Lastly USL2 is probably at or below national conference south/north level. The organisation of teams at that semi pro level is far less than in England but at this level the travel is what must break teams. My local USL2 team just folded and in no doubt it's because of having to travel 8hours regularly for away games.. at semi pro level.. US football is on the rise but will forever be held back by lack promotion/relegation and the funding that is built into that. As well as the chance for a storyline that increases the drama of the sport

Can u do a vid on why the USA doesn't do promotion and relegation like the normal countries?

Awesome insights! I’ve always been curious about this!

A reasonable analysis, I enjoyed it

Its good that you tried to find a way to establish rational relative metrics of comparison. But - I think this is still optimistic in the extreme. MLS to me sits well below the Championship on average. The best few of the MLS teams could probably stay up in the Championship - but most would compete better against league 1 level teams. So I'd reverse what you said. The top 5 MLS team probably compete at Championship level (but certainly not as good as the top few championship teams), most of the rest could probably compete well in league 1. In my view none are anywhere close to Premier league level - so this analysis makes sense since the top 3 Championship teams will rotate to the premier league annually. I will give you that MLS has been improving steadily.

Agreed with you. The MLS finally has serious potential to be as watched in England as we watch any of the other top 5 leagues. The only problem is stubborn ignorance of anything American

Fantastic analysis. Thank you. Always kinda wondered.

Very interesting and well done breakdown

I think comparing how the players do in the leagues might be the best way, I'd be surprised if most USL player could cut it in league one or even two, as there is no way that the the worst players in the MLS could play Championship level. Honestly I wouldn't expect many USL teams to get out the conference, though they probably could compete, though the conference is one the most improved leagues in the past 10 odd years, as teams who get promoted no longer struggle so much in league two. But again look at some of the best players in league one and they could play in the MLS while the worst in the MLS would not be getting games in the leagues I don't think. Though leagues are different some players are better at certain leagues, teams, systems than they are at others etc.

Where would the other U.S. leagues fall (ex. USL League One or NISA) in comparison to the English leagues? I imagine it would be similar to non-league football (Div. 5 or below).

Great video and analysis mate

very well done comparing the leagues objectively. Sounds like a very reasonable conclusion.

Off the field they stack up where they do. But you left out standard of play, MLS is mostly lower than championship level and USL would be lucky to be League 2 level.

I'd fancy Sheffield Wednesday (top of L1) to beat every 2nd division US side with ease and probably up to the top 6 MLS sides. You look at Sunderland who just went up from L1 and they have an England International touted goalkeeper and are knocking on the door of the Championship top 6 already. Burnley (runaway Championship leaders) would beat every MLS side I think.

Excellent video mate! Loved the graphics and in-depth research! You earned a subscriber today! Would love to see you do it again but include college leagues and maybe the Canadian premier League too

Great video Matt.

My only exposure to the USL has been through your game analysis videos and if I’m being totally honest it looks like non league level.

I doubt any mls team would finish top half in the championship

great concept!

I didn't care about any of this before seeing the title. But you made it easy to understand and very interesting

Just going off of the eye test, I wouldn't be surprised if Ipswich Town could beat Toronto FC 3 times out of 3

Good video. I like how you split them up at the end though I think USLC is more on par with League 2 than anything.

Great analysis

Interesting take man. I think you are pretty accurate here.

great video bro

I think you nailed it pretty well at the end. Coming from an American living in one of the higher USL Championship cities.

Fair assessment and unbiased.

Excellent video and something my sons and I have discussed many times...would like to see a comparison of the European Leagues done in this manner.

great content

Fans of AFCBournemouth have little problem being placed last in any Premiership Stats because I for one still feel exactly like Marty Mc Fly when he couldn’t believe how his local side struggling in 1985 had now made the big time in 2015 ! Very interesting work chap. Many thanks 👍😁

Love the detail you went into in this vid. Cool to see the visualisation of the data. I found it interesting the pay gap between the highest paid player in the MLS and the average pay. Good conclusion I thought, the league system in the US does seem to be a ways behind the English system but in terms of national teams, US is catching up with the quality of its players - hence the draw in the World Cup.

Really enjoyed this as a league one club season ticket holder

Really interesting video! Pretty close to how I view the comparison. Not sure how it should be quantified but I’d assume outside pressures (media coverage, supporter praise/criticism, etc.) would factor in significantly. Especially media coverage. Media access seems highly restricted, there’s fewer journalists covering the game, and analysis gets little airtime. If someone could do a video on that, I think it could be very interesting.

Thanks for all the work that you’ve put into this. Really interesting to see what you have come up with. 👍🏾

great made video!

Honestly, fair analysis 🤷🏽‍♂️

this was dope

Nice video 👍

Cool video 👍

Nice video, you should have included USL league 1 as it is also a professional USA league

really interesting video