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Two days after Portuguese legend Cristiano Ronaldo claimed the Saudi Pro League is better than the French League at the Globe Soccer Awards 2023, the Middle East country's national football league has improved its position in the IFFHS Men's Strongest League in the World and extended the difference to 30 places from Lionel Messi's Major League Soccer (MLS) in the USA.
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Al-Nassr star forward Cristiano Ronaldo swept awards at the 14th edition of the Globe Soccer Awards that took place at the Atlantis, The Palm in Dubai on Friday night. The five-time Ballon d'Or winner claimed the Maradona Award for the best goalscorer in 2023, Fans' Favourite Player of the Year, and Best Middle East Player awards on January 19.
When asked about the Saudi Pro League's status in world football, Cristiano stated, "The Saudi League is not worse than the French League." A couple of days later, the International Federation of Football History & Statistics (IFFHS) released the rankings for the Men's Leagues in the world and the Saudi Pro League (33) has made a significant improvement by climbing seven ranks.
On the other hand, the French league has continued its sixth rank while Argentina captain Lionel Messi's Major League Soccer has dropped down to 63rd rank after managing 43rd rank in 2022. Despite the arrival of European superstars like Messi, Luis Suarez, and Sergio Busquets among others, the MLS is the third-top league in the CONCACAF, behind Mexican and Costa Rican leagues.
IFFHS' Top 10 Men's Strongest League in the World
- Serie A - Italy: 1619.5 points
- Premier League - England: 1567 points
- La Liga - Spain: 1447 points
- Serie A - Brazil: 1290.5 points
- Bundesliga - Germany: 1282.75 points
- Ligue 1 - France: 1143.25 points
- Liga Portugal - Portugal: 1097 points
- Eredivisie - Netherlands: 1049.75 points
- Belgian Pro League - Belgium: 1004.75 points
- Primera División - Argentina: 966.5 points
Top 5 Leagues In Each Confederation
- UEFA TOP 5: Italy - England - Spain - Germany - France
- CONMEBOL TOP 5: Brazil - Argentina - Colombia - Paraguay - Ecuador
- CAF TOP 5: Egypt - Morocco - Algeria - Tunisia - South Africa
- AFC TOP 5: Korea Republic - Saudi Arabia - Japan - Uzbekistan - Iran
- CONCACAF TOP 5: Mexico - Costa Rica - USA - Honduras - Nicaragua
- OCEANIA TOP 5: New Zealand - Tahiti - Solomon Islands - Fiji - New Caledonia
