The Premier League is the highest level of soccer competition in England and is considered by many soccer fans as one of the best leagues in the world.
The Premier League consists of 20 clubs, the majority of those clubs coming from England, although some Welsh clubs can also participate in the competition.
Interesting facts and Figures Premier League
- The Premier League was founded on 20 February 1992 and was a break away from The Football League which was formed in 1888.
- The 1992-season started with 22 Premier League clubs. This was changed in 1995, when four teams relegated.
- Since the start of the Premier League in 1992, Manchester United won most titles (13), followed by London-based teams Arsenal and Chelsea with three Premier League Championships each.
- Sheffield United’s Brian Deane scored the first goal in the history of the Premier League. His team beat Manchester United with a 2-1 score.
- The Premier League is a corporation and each club in the highest division is shareholder. The clubs appoint a chairman, CEO and a Board to deal with the day-to-day activities.
- Since the Premier League started in 1992, there have been three sponsors, which also had an effect on the name of the league; from 1993 to 2001 it was called the FA Carling Premiership, Barclaycard Premiership was the name of the highest English soccer competition from 2001 to 2004 and since then it is the Barclays Premier League.
- Broadcasts of Premier League games reach more than 600 million people in over 200 countries worldwide.
- Teams in the highest soccer division in England spend on average 115 million US dollars on player salaries.
- The longest-serving manager in the Premier League was Sir Alex Ferguson of Manchester United, who was in charge of these soccer giants from 1986 to 2013. Nowadays, it is Arsene Wenger who is in charge of Arsenal since 1996.
- Ryan Giggs (Manchester United) holds the current record of most appearances as a player in the Premier League.
- Aston Villa, Arsenal, Chelsea, Manchester United, Everton, Liverpool and Tottenham Hotspur are the only teams that have never been relegated from the Premier League.
- Matches in the highest English soccer league have an attendance of approximately 36,000 spectators, coming second in Europe after the German Bundesliga.
- An English manager has never won the title in the Premier League. Alex Ferguson (Manchester United) and Kenny Dalglish (Blackburn Rovers) have the British nationality, but are from Scotland. Arsene Wenger from France, Jose Mourinho from Portugal and Italian Carlo Ancelotti are the other managers who won one or more Premiership titles.