How the European Football Landscape Has Changed This Summer

It has been a momentous close season in European football, with a series of major transfers having already taken place and many of the continent's biggest clubs having changed their managers.

While the fortunes of individual team units may not change overnight, there are certainly trends this summer that could potentially offer insight into how football could develop in Europe over the coming years.

Given the number of changes among high-level club sides this summer, as well as the increased spending power of some nontraditional giants, it is easy to get the feeling that 2013 could eventually be seen as somewhat of a landmark summer.

Let's then take a look at some of the key areas in which the European football landscape has changed this year.

Managerial changes

Never has there been a summer with quite so many managerial changes among Europe's top clubs.

Three of last season's Champions League semifinalists have changed their manager this summer, three of the Premier League's established top four have followed suit, and, perhaps similarly important these days, Paris Saint-Germain have done so also.

Managerial changes create uncertainty in many respects. New managers inevitably wish to bring in some fresh faces to mould a club's existing squad to their wants, while the change may also see some players become available.

While changes at the likes of Manchester City, PSG and Chelsea are notable in terms of the clubs' spending power, the biggest change undoubtedly occurred with Sir Alex Ferguson's retirement at Old Trafford.

After 27 trophy-laden years, the iconic Scot chose to move on from Old Trafford. The result has been a tremendous amount of uncertainty in the English game ahead of the new season, with nobody quite sure what to expect from Manchester United, or indeed, any of their rivals.

A fascinating season awaits across Europe, with title challenging sides in Spain, Italy, England, Germany, Netherlands and Portugal all heading into the season under new management.

Spending of Monaco and PSG

Another factor that has rocked the established makeup of European football in recent years is the influx of money into Ligue 1 sides PSG and Monaco.

While PSG are already two seasons into their club redesign, Monaco have upped the ante in France this summer by building a team unit that would appear to make the newly promoted outfit contenders for the title.

Given their head start, the Parisiens will still expect to be title winners in France this season. For Monaco, though, this summer will be viewed as the beginning of a new era for the club.

While the rest of Ligue 1 may have continued to see talented players depart this summer—with the likes of Lisandro Lopez, Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang, Younes Belhanda and Etienne Capoue leading the charge—the big-spending pair have signed a collection of world-leading talents.

A very competitive league since the Lyon domination of the early 2000s, Ligue 1 will continue to move toward predictability if the trend continues.

Can PSG and Monaco kick on to challenge for major European titles in the years to come, though? If money is continually made available, the answer would have to be yes.

Serie A benefiting from sales

It has not been a good couple of seasons for Italian football, with the flow of talent heading almost exclusively out of Italy. This summer, though, marked somewhat of a change to that dynamic.

While Edinson Cavani and Marquinhos both departed the league in the direction of PSG, and Stevan Jovetic went to Manchester City, the league has also seen £283 million worth of spending this summer, according to TransferMarkt.

The figures show that the vast majority of that spending, around £250 million, has been offset by player sales. But, given the enormity of some of the fees paid to extricate players from Serie A, clubs have been able to add depth and quality for their money.

The additions of Mario Gomez, Gonzalo Higuain, Carlos Tevez and Fernando Llorente are indicative of the quality that the league has managed to add. With Juventus cash-rich and several rivals benefiting from enormous player-sale revenues, it makes for a pleasant change to see Italian sides spending money.

Napoli have brought in significant reinforcements over the summer, while Fiorentina are another who will be more than pleased with their summer activity.

The financial difficulties of recent years may have forced Serie A to look more to youth, but those policies are now beginning to pay dividends.

Premier League TV deal

The Premier League has long held a financial advantage over its biggest rivals due to its incredible commercial operations. That advantage has widened significantly over the course of the summer.

While some of the league's biggest sides have missed out on some high-profile targets this summer, mainly due to the disregard that the nouveau riche of Ligue 1 have shown for Financial Fair Play regulation, the division's midtable sides have clearly demonstrated the English game's muscle in the market.

The 20th-placed side in the division this season can expect to earn £63 million from television money alone, according to the Telegraph, an increase of around £25 million on last season.

Thus, this summer we have seen clubs from the lower half of the Premier League spectrum—Norwich, Cardiff, Fulham—signing players from sides abroad who have both a greater reputation and chance of success.

With its ongoing financial issues, La Liga has become rich pickings for the Premier League—with only Real Madrid and Barcelona players seemingly untouchable.

It is a trend that will see levels of competition in the Premier League increase considerably, and one that will continue in earnest until the end of the window on Sept. 2.

La Liga inequality gap widens

The topic of financially inequality within La Liga has long been a major talking point, but perhaps this summer's transfer window saw the situation reach a tipping point.

Four of the top eight goalscorers in the league have departed this summer, with Cristiano Ronaldo and Lionel Messi joined by two 32-year-old forwards in remaining. A host of Spain youth internationals have also departed, as have several established top-flight players—many in the direction of England.

Barcelona and Real Madrid may be spending significant money to recruit world-leading talents, but their dominance of the league's television revenues are continuing to hurt the rest of the division.

As highlighted here by the Independent, the Spanish top flight is a league sinking into a financial abyss due to a decreasing number of subscribers and significant debts throughout the league.

There has been much talk of replacing the current TV deal—which sees the El Clasico duo rake in around €140 million, but Granada take home just €12 million, as reported by ESPN.

That has long since been a necessity, but the talent drain Spain has experienced this summer surely has to prompt the authorities to take action.

Bundesliga maintains status quo

Bayern and Borussia Dortmund may find themselves awash with money courtesy of sponsors and their European exploits, but it is certainly not the case lower down the division.

The top two sides in the league have spent £100 million between them this summer, while the remaining 18 sides have parted with just £91 million—an average of just £5 million per side.

As explained by the Bundesliga Fanatic team here, the German league has performed poorly for a country of its size in terms of television revenue. While it will increase this season, it is still incomparable with the behemoth that is the Premier League.

Bayern Munich's capture of Mario Gotze for €37.5 million was a demonstration of their financial dominance in the division—a fact that directly correlates to their enduring success.

Arguably, though, the money has afforded Dortmund the opportunity to strengthen—with their rivals signing two impressive attacking options in Henrikh Mkhitaryan and the aforementioned Aubameyang.

The Bundesliga is definitely on the rise but could still do far more to market itself to the levels of its rival divisions.