Rest of the World
June 3, 2008
South America
A hot bed of world renouned players, South American leagues are surprising sub par when compared to European leagues. The two top leagues are from Argentina and Brazil.
Primera División Argentina
This league has traditionally been top heavy with River Plate and Boca Juniors being the well known and top teams. Lately the league has become more competitive.
Campeonato Brasileiro Série A
Similar to Argentina, Brazil’s top league is also top heavy with São Paulo and Corinthians being the top two teams. This league does use relegation to Serie B with 4 teams swapping leagues.
Asia
J-League
The top Japanese league was started in 1992 and continues to grow. While not a huge league, it is influential in Japanese sports. It continues to grow at about the same rate as the MLS, however it does have multiple divisions for relegation. This allows teams to grow at a lower division and gain in popularity before being thrown in the top league.
K-League
The K-League is the top level of Korean soccer. It is a well established league being sponsored by a number of Korean corporations. It consists of 14 teams and does not have a system of relegation.
A-League
The A-League is a relatively new soccer league in Australia. It consists of 8 teams and does not have a relegation system. For being a new league, it has gained in popularity quickly and looks to expand the number of teams in the near future.