5 reasons why La Liga is better than the Premier League

The beauty of football lies in its complexity. Eternal debates rage on, to which there is no one true answer. One among them has been the debate over which of La Liga or the Premier League is better.

The Premier League wins the television and financial stakes, but that is not all that a league is about.

Here are 5 reasons why La Liga is better than the Premier League:

#1 History

It’s a bit disingenous to suggest that English football’s First Division, which was founded in 1888 is not as historic at the La Liga, founded in 1929. The Premier League, as we know it know, was formed in 1992 – but again that’s a matter of semantics.

The reason La Liga has more of a history to it is simple – quiz any Barcelona and Real Madrid fan about the history of Spain and you’ll receive a surprisingly knowledgable answer, even if said fan is not from Spain. General Franco’s ‘links’ to Real Madrid still float around in hushed whispers and conspiracy theories abound over the transfer of Alfredo di Stefano.

The deep-seated divisions within Spanish culture have carried over to football – Catalan, Basque, Castillan identities are inextricably linked to clubs like Barcelona, Athletic Bilbao and Real Madrid. There is simply no equivalent in English football. Liverpool and Everton may have a claim to represent ‘Scouse’ identity – but that is more of a dialect. England is not a land without divisions of culture, but those do not carry over to football.

So why does this make La Liga better? It’s not just a football match when Barcelona, Real Madrid, Sevilla, Athletic Bilbao, Celta Vigo clash. The distinct cultures of Catalonia, Castille, Andalusia, Basque, Galicia are all on display – a deep seated division that carries over to the pitch in a competitive way.