The Top 12 Soccer Leagues on the Planet

With this weekend comes the final starting point for some of the world's finest soccer leagues.

Serie A in Italy and La Liga of Spain kick off, and the 2010-11 soccer season in most of Europe will officially be under way across the board.

Following the starts of the Premiership, German Bundesliga, Eredivisie, and Ligue 1, the Super 6 will be officially in full bloom.

The question, as always, is which are the world's best leagues?

Obviously the Super 6 are up for consideration, as are other European leagues such as the Portuguese Liga, the Turkish Superleague, and the npower Championship.

But what about the Americas? The Mexican Primera is top-notch, the Argentinean Primera and Brazilian Serie A are fun, but is the United States' MLS underrated?

Don't forget Asia, with their growing J and K-Leagues and the Hyundai A-League having gotten off to a cracking start.

Africa? Well, other than the top flight in Egypt, there really isn't a domestic league to get pumped up about.

So what is the best soccer league on the planet? Maybe this will put things in perspective, as here is a Top 12 ranking, preceded by some attention given to the underdog leagues.

Keep in mind I spent a lot of time perusing over 20 leagues over a course of a month.

Rankings based on the criteria of: 1. Overall athletic talent and skill; 2. Depth of the league on an international scale; 3. Parity.

Outside the elite, worth noting

The Australian Hyundai A-League may not be loaded with talent, but after three weeks it is not hard to be entertained by shootouts and some dramatic finishes. As fun to watch as any league.

The Costa Rican Primera League has some interesting teams that do well in continental play and also play some rugged matches domestically. The talent is there; the skill needs work.

The Danish Superliga has some teams who do well in Europa League but not so well in the Champions League. The top five teams are usually tough, but the depth of the league is questionable.

Keeping it interesting: Greek Super League, Scottish Premiership, Chilean Primera, and Egyptian First Division

Why? The Greeks always produce a strong team or two in European play; Rangers and Celtic and everyone else does not make for a Top 12 league even if the big dogs can bite at times; Chilean soccer has Colo Colo, University de Chile, and University Catolica to name a few squads that have really done well in Copa Libertadores and Sudamerica as of late; Egypt produces many continental threats, especially Al Ahly, who has done its share of dominating the continent, and usually the top four or five squads are legit.

The outside looking in: The npower Championship, J-League, Argentinean Primera, and Turkish Superleague

Why? The npower has some teams that could compete with the top dogs in some of the smaller leagues; J-League powers can compete internationally; Argentina always has teams that compete in the Copas; and Turkey is so close to the precipice with many teams battling it out for European group stage spots.

12. United States' MLS

Yup. Not being a homer. This is arguably the most physical league on the planet. The talent base is improving, and the competitive balance is quite strong. More and more players are getting looked at by the world, and the only thing keeping the league from becoming better is the continued expansion, which may be too fast for its current talent base.

11. Russian Premier League

Rarely spoken of as a top league, but seriously, what a strong group of teams. Winners of Europa League/UEFA Cups, and many teams continue to make strides in the Champions League. More money coming through would only mean bigger player acquisitions in the future and better teams than ever.

10. Brazilian Serie A

Call it the AAA league for the European Leagues. Constantly mined for talent, so Brazilians fans get an early sniff at future national team stars while getting a chance to watch former big boys end their careers back home. They constantly compete for Copa hardware and battle strong at the World Club Cup.

9. Portuguese Liga

Only because the Porto, Braga, and Sporting clubs are strong, but it is going down the road of leaving the Top 12. There is still quite a bit of talent and pride in the league, but the top dogs are weakening, and the lower-tier teams are losing their ability to compete.

8. South Korea's K-League

Completely dominated the Asian Champions League, and they have a penchant for fast, high-energy soccer. Their national team consists of many of these guys, and thus the talent base continues to build and improve. Could become the top Asian League by a landslide for years.

7. Holland's Eredivisie

With Ajax scoring goals at pace, Twente's rise, PSV always around, and plenty of other infant challengers to European spots, the league offers some excitement and style not seen in most corners of the world.

6. Mexico's Primera Division

By far the most underrated league in the world. It may even be deeper and more exciting than Serie A. The style and flair of this league is as fun as it comes, and the talent is unmistakable. Plenty of teams battle for hardware, and the squads that challenge for the crown continue to change names.

5. Italy's Serie A

Internazionale won the Champions League, and there are plenty of strong sides—Roma, Sampdoria, Napoli, AC Milan, Juventus. But let's be honest; the league is getting stale. The style is so defensive that they could represent O.J. on his worst day, and their European challenge has weakened dramatically.

4. France's Ligue 1

Deeper and deeper. This league has a good solid six to eight teams that could challenge for European spots this year and maybe four that will battle for the Ligue 1 title. Lyon is always strong, and don't discount Marseilles, Bordeaux, and Lille, while Montpellier could be a Cinderella of epic proportion.

3. Germany's Bundesliga

Every year more and more quality clubs trade places for European spots. Yes, Bayern Munchen leads the parade, but you have Leverkusen, Schalke, Stuttgart, Werder Bremen, Dortmund, etc., etc., etc. The style is fast and physical and technically as strong as there is anywhere.

2. Spain's La Liga

Okay. Technically should be a fourth or fifth choice, but the dominance and brilliance of Barcelona and Real Madrid make the biggest impact. Atletico Madrid's Europa League title only helps, and Valencia, Villarreal, Getafe, and Mallorca are fun and entertaining. The style of play is as fashionable as ever played, and the bottom can always cause a scare for the top.

1. England's Barclay's Premiership

Most of the best non-Spanish talent resides here. African stars. Asian stars. European stars. If anything, the league's superior talent, pace, skill, and strength trump all, and their teams' great success in Europe behooves its dominance even more.

What it also proves is that with most of the teams' star players being from anywhere else but England (and that no English players tend to do well anywhere else or seem that incredibly wanted), the Union Jack's World Cup team may be exactly where they should be: mediocrity.