The English Premier League has the wealth and global popularity, but over in mainland Europe there are a number of traditionally strong national championships with their own claims to be the best – not least in Spain and Italy.

La Liga offers arguably the prettiest brand of football in Europe in the slick passing game practised by so many Spanish clubs – and epitomised by their triumphant national side at Euro 2008.

In Barcelona and Real Madrid, Spain has two of the world's biggest and most glamorous clubs, whose rivalry is arguably unique in terms of its political and cultural significance.

While this pair lay claim to much of the silverware, there are plenty of other teams that are easy on the eye, with Atletico Madrid, Sevilla, Valencia and Villarreal having all produced attractive sides in recent seasons.

Italy's Serie A is famed for its focus on the defensive arts – this was the home of catenaccio, after all.

However, if tactical discipline is the watchword, 'calcio' also has an undeniable capacity for the spectacular, not least from its trio of powerful northern clubs – Juventus, AC Milan and Internazionale – who have hogged the honours down the years, despite recent resistance from Roma.

Serie A lost some of its sheen with the 2006 match-fixing scandal and ongoing hooligan problems, but the national team's World Cup triumph in Germany underlined the winning mentality of Italian footballers.

The German Bundesliga has the honour of being the European mainland's best-supported championship, with clubs like Bayern Munich, Borussia Dortmund, Cologne, Hamburg, Stuttgart and Schalke attracting huge audiences.

It may lack the finance to attract the biggest names but is perhaps the most competitive of Europe's big leagues, producing a wide range of rivals to Bayern's dominance.

The other of the recognised major leagues is France's Ligue 1, where Lyon have become the team to beat, even though big-city rivals Olympique Marseille and Paris Saint-Germain command much of the attention.

While it may lose its leading players abroad, Ligue 1 continues producing exciting young talents – as well as drawing on imports from French-speaking Africa.