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News

Mon. 26 November 2018

Most represented origins in the big-5 leagues

Issue number 241 of the CIES Football Observatory Weekly Post ranks countries according to the number of domestic league minutes played by their representatives in the big-5. The French (=players who grew up in France) top the rankings (19.7% of total minutes) ahead of the Spaniards (15.2%) and the Germans (9.8%). Overall, players originating from 85 countries have taken part in big-5 league matches so far this season.

In each league surveyed, the highest percentage of minutes per origin was measured for nationals. Nevertheless, the gaps are quite marked: from 62.7% in the French League 1 to only 35.3% in the English Premier League. The figures in the remaining championships are 39.0% in the Italian Serie A, 48.5% in the German Bundesliga and 61.0% in the Spanish Liga.

The greatest values for players originating from abroad were recorded for the French in England (10.9%) and Germany (8.0%), the Brazilians in Italy (7.0%) and France (6.8%), as well as for the Argentineans in Spain (also 6.8%). The English Premier League hosts the representatives from the most countries (54). This figure is 50 in the Serie A, 46 in the Ligue 1, 45 in the Bundesliga and only 40 in the Liga.

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