Wednesday, 10 December 2025

MLS USA 30 Year Summary : 1996-2025

The main problem associated with this is the fact that some clubs have been around thirty years and others few or in one case just one. Points are allocated to reflect success but the difference in the number of years participating makes years of service the main factor rather than the quality of those years.

If points detemined the rankings, then LA Galaxy would head the table. It has produced some quality over those years too. There are others that have been really successful but due to limited years would be well down the chart. 

So I thought averages would be a better indicator. Divide the points by years. That isn't perfect either as new clubs are often surprisingly successful from day one. It still is the better way, so that's how it is presented in the chart below.

The yellow columns show combined figures from the League and Finals. They each have an average figure and a total one. The only difference is that the Combined section also has CT, or a count of how many seasons that club has participated. 

So all the average figures are based on the number of seasons played. San Diego's excellent one season puts it at the top, but maintaining that over more seasons will be impossible. Below are clubs that have put in many seasons and have shown a high level of consistency.

The Seattle Sounders have been exceptional over 17 seasons to average 18.6 points per season. Several clubs just below Seattle have also done well over a prolonged period. 

Some of the names are for clubs no longer part of the scene. Tampa Bay Mutiny and Miami Fusion did well while they lasted. Chivas USA obviously struggled to make an impact. 

Thursday, 30 October 2025

Romania Clubs Ranked - 1960/61 to 2024/25

Football was first played in Romania in the 1800's but the first domestic competition was held in 1909. The 1980's and 1990's were a strong period for the sport in the country. 

The most successful club is Steaua București but was forced to change its name and is now known as FCSB. I have kept the older name as that is what it is better known as outside of Romania.

To the right is a summary of the top clubs. The two main Bucharest clubs have dominated the domestic league scene ('Rom' Column) and with some success in Europe adding to the 'Tot' column. How are the points awarded? 

In the Liga 1 (first division), the top four are rewarded with 6, 3, 2 and 1. The Cupa României 4 and 2 points for the finalists only. The Cupa Ligii 3 and 1. Up to 8 points are awarded for European success. Let's dive deeper.

In Liga 1, Steaua București has won the last two years and the best team since 1960/61. Dinamo Bucureşti has not won since 2007, so is no longer the club it once was. CFR Cluj won the league consecutively from 2017/18 to 2021/22. 

The Cupa României has the same top sides as in the league. Recently it has had other winners. Of the last four cups, Sepsi OSK have won it twice, then Corvinul Hunedoara and CFR Cluj once each.


The Cupa Ligii has rarely been held, with Steaua București the top of the list with 6 points and FCM Bacău on 4.Rapid Bucureşti,Gloria Bistrița and Dinamo Bucureşti 3 points each.

In Europe, Steaua București won the now called Champions League in 1986, runner up in 1989 and semi fnailist in 1988. Otherwise, it's been lean pickings.

All put together, the clubs are below. The grand total is shown for each club, divided into regions with a ranking number (Rk), which gives their place compared to all the other clubs. This is a long list of clubs, more than any other I've done. Some of them have now ceased to exist.

Bucharest is in the south but is listed separately here. With 59% of the points on offer, it is the strongest region by far. The South West is next, then the North West. The other areas have had a limited impact. 






Tuesday, 21 October 2025

Sweden Women Clubs Ranked - 1988 to 2024

Sweden led the way in women's football with the creation of a professional league, the Damallsvenskan in 1988. That led to success in Europe for the top Swedish clubs. As other nations have followed suit, Sweden hasn't been able to replicate that success but still has a strong domestic competition.

First, to clarify some of the club's changes. Kopparbergs/Landvetters became Kopparbergs/Göteberg and then finally BK Häcken FF, all of the history that is here is under the latter. 

FC Rosengård was Malmö FF Dam and then LdB FC Malmö. It merged with FC Rosengård and took the Rosengård name. All the history is here is listed under the FC Rosengård as it is the same club in various forms. Malmö FF was reformed as a club in 2019 just to confuse matters. 

Älvsjö AIK merged with Djurgårdens IF but are kept separate here. The reason is they both played against each other until 2002 so the records up until then are kept apart. Älvsjö was by far the more successful of the two but after a couple of seasons after the merger where their names were both used, they took the name Djurgårdens IF in 2007 and all points since the merger are here credited to Djurgårdens.

To the right are the top six club sides. 'Swe' is for points accrued in the domestic league and 'Tot' adds European success. 

The Malmö based FC Rosengård is well ahead of second placed Umeå IK, based in the north of Sweden. Linköpings FC is third with its success coming more recently. The other three were mentioned above.

How are points allocated? Damallsvenskan (Division 1) gets 6,3,2 and 1 point for the top four. The Svenska Cupen (Cup) 4 and 2 for the finalists. The European Champions League is 8, 4 and 2 for the top four, depending on where they finish. 

The Damallsvenskan, or first division, is shown to the left. FC Rosengård has consistently been a top performer whereas Umeå IK was successful around the early 2000's only. Djurgårdens IF fell away after 2007 but in contrast, BK Häcken's points have come since then. 


The Svenska Cupen is like many cup competitions, the knock out format means it is less predictable. Certain clubs have enjoyed success for periods of time but not on a prolonged basis. BK Häcken has been in the last four cup finals, although it did only win one of them.   

The Champions League was first played in the 2001/02 season. This coincided with Umeå IK being at its strongest and they were in five finals, winning twice. Djurgårdens IF and Tyresö FF have both been losing finalists once. Swedish clubs have not made it to the semi final stage since 2013/14. 


All put together, the clubs are below. The grand total is shown for each club on the left, then on the right they are divided into regions with a ranking number (Rk), which gives their place compared to all the other clubs in their region.

The regional coverage is well spread. The South leads from Stockholm. The less populated North does well, with Central Sweden and Gothenburg also providing solid contributions. Capital cities are normally strong in sport but not so much here.