World Club Top 25 - The English Screw Everything Up

I actually considered taking this week off from the weekly rankings because there wasn't much going on this weekend and I just posted the annual ranking for 2007. Then West Ham goes and knocks Manchester United out of the top spot in the Premiership (nice penalty kick, Cristiano!!) and things in the rankings get shuffled a little bit.

I was a few days late last week and now I'm a day early. Que pasa? Well, all of the meaningful pre-2008 games have been played - and I'm doing laundry - so I figured this was as good a time as any to post the weekly rankings. It should be pretty light on commentary since the weekend was pretty light on action, not that it's ever really all that heavy on commentary, but you could always read past Top 25s if you want to see why teams are where they are.

World Club Rankings Top 25 - December 31, 2007

1. Internazionale (Ita) (1) - How good is Inter? They didn't play this week and they still won by three goals.

2. Arsenal (Eng) (6) - Whenever I think that a fifth team is ready to stake a claim to a surprising finish in the Premiership, one of the big four comes by and bursts my bubble. Everton had been playing well, but Arsenal put them in their place.

3. Real Madrid (Esp) (3) - Someday, Real will pass by whoever happens to be leading in the Premiership in the rankings. Today is not that day.

4. Manchester United (Eng) (2) - I just don't understand. I was only able to catch the second half of the game. It was the bad half, if you're a Red Devils fan.

5. Porto (Por) (4) - Porto was finally knocked off of its fourth-place perch this week. Return to action next weekend against Naval.

6. Roma (Ita) (5) - I really ain't got nothing this week for Roma. I miss Serie A already. This is not the most wonderful time of the year.

7. Juventus (Ita) (7) - Cheating bastards.

8. Barcelona (Esp) (8) - At least the Primera Division returns to action this weekend. Also have a Copa del Rey match on Thursday. Need to rebound from loss in el Classico if it is going to have any shot at winning the league.

9. Lyon (Fra) (9) - Return to action in the French Cup this week. Anybody care?

10. Sao Paulo (Bra) (10) - Return to action in . . . I think February. Should be in a very entertaining group in the Copa Libertadores, especially if Audax Italiano gets through its qualifier.

11. Benfica (Por) (11)

12. Chelsea (Eng) (15)

13. Bayern Munchen (Ger) (13)

14. Liverpool (Eng) (12)

15. Feyenoord (Ned) (14)

16. PSV Eindhoven (Ned) (24)

17. Sporting CP (Por) (16)

18. Nancy Lorraine (Fra) (17)

19. Espanyol (Esp) (20)

20. Lanus (Arg) (18)

21. Werder Bremen (Ger) (21)

22. Fiorentina (Ita) (23)

23. Rangers (Sco) (22)

24. Celtic (Sco) (NR)

25. Santos Laguna (Mex) (25)

Dropped Out: Ajax (Ned) (19)

Bubbling Under: Ajax (Ned), Atletico de Madrid (Esp), Atletico Nacional (Col), Udinese (Ita), Villarreal (Esp)

Numbers 46-50: Palermo (Ita), AC Milan (Ita), AEK Athens (Ita), Portsmouth (Eng), Danubio (Uru)

Matches between Top 25 teams this week:

Jan. 2 - (23) Rangers at (24) Celtic

WCL 2007 Team of the Year - Manchester United

You voted and I listened. Actually, I determined the year-end World Club Rankings 2007 Top 25 and then posted a meaningless poll in which you participated and, strictly by coincidence, Manchester United came in tops in both. In the vote, Arsenal actually received more than 20 percent of the vote. Based on what? It's fourth-place finish in the premiership or its ouster from the Champions League in the Round of 16 at the hands of PSV Eindhoven? Seriously? That's why the vote was just included as a popularity contest.

PLEASE READ THIS BEFORE BITCHING (and then feel free to bitch): The year-end ranking, below, is not a snapshot of the best teams in the world at this particular moment in time. If that is what you want, that is better reflected in the Weekly Top 25 lists that I post, usually on Mondays. The year-end rankings are based on the last complete season played by each national league. For most of the higher-ranked leagues, that is the 2006/2007 season. For others, such as Colombia and Russia, it is based on the 2007 season. Information regarding standings and goal differential for the top fifty leagues is factored by league coefficients based upon how each league's members have performed in continental and international competitions over the past five years. Finally, teams are given what I like to call Super-Bonus-Points for reaching the semifinals of their respective continental championship tournaments.

Since most of the data for this ranking is from June 2007 or earlier, you may wonder why I'm posting it now. Well, Kasey Kasem taught me many things. He taught me that you should marry someone who is much younger and much hotter than you are. He taught me that when you have the munchies, Scooby Snacks hit the spot. Most of all, however, he taught me that if you do a weekly ranking, you should save the final weekend of the year for the annual countdown. More importantly, many things have happened since June such as the determination of the champions of Asia and Africa and an entire Brazilian season.

Something special happened in this year's rankings. As stated above, Manchester United, perhaps the most popular team in the world, won its first WCR title, which date back to 1960. (I know they should have won in 1999, but I just manipulate the numbers, I don't make them up.) More surprisingly, England became the first nation in the history of the WCL rankings to place teams in each of the first three positions. How? Well, it's one of the highest ranked conferences and it placed each of its top three finishers in the semifinals of the Champions League. It also helped that the other semifinalist, and eventual winner - AC Milan, could not finish any better than fourth in Serie A.

World Club Rankings Top 25 - 2007

1. Manchester United (Eng) - Premiership Winner; Champions League Semifinalist; FA Cup runner-up. Eleventh consecutive year in the WCL Top 25.

2. Chelsea (Eng) - FA Cup Winner; Carling Cup Winner; Premiership runner-up; Champions League semifinalist. Fourth consecutive year in the WCL Top ten.

3. Liverpool (Eng) - Champions League runner-up; Premiership third-place; Carling Cup quarterfinalist. Best WCL finish since finishing third in 1986.

4. Boca Juniors (Arg) - Copa Libertadores Winner; Club World Cup runner-up; 2006/07 Apertura runner-up; Clausura runner-up. Third time in the Top Five over the past five years.

5. AC Milan (Ita) - Champions League Winner; Club World Cup Winner; Serie A fourth-place; Coppa Italia semifinalist. Third straight WCL Top Five; fifth consecutive season in the Top Ten.

6. Internazionale (Ita) - Serie A Winner; Coppa Italia runner-up. Best WCL Top 25 finish since 2003.

7. Pachuca (Mex) - CONCACAF Champions Cup Winner; 2006/07 Apertura runner-up; Clausura Winner; Club World Cup quarterfinalist. First season in WCL Top 25.

8. Santos (Bra) - Brazil Serie A - runner-up; Copa Libertadores semifinalist. Highest WCL finish since 1964.

9. Porto (Por) - BWIN Superliga Winner. Fourteenth Top Ten finish in the WCL annual rankings.

10. Roma (Ita) - Coppa Italia Winner; Serie A runner-up; Champions League quarterfinalist. Best WCL finish since 2001.

11. Real Madrid (Esp) - Primera Division Winner. Eighth straight WCL Top25 ranking, 38th overall since 1960.

12. Cucuta Deportivo (Col) - Copa Libertadores semifinalist; second-best overall record in 2007 Colombian season. First ever WCL Top 25 finish.

13. Barcelona (Esp) - Primera Division runner-up; Copa Del Rey semifinalist. 33rd WCL Top 25 finish.

14. Sporting CP (Por) - Portugal Cup Winner; BWIN Superliga runner-up. Best WCL finish since 1966.

15. Sao Paulo (Bra) - Brazil Serie A Winner. Fourth WCL Top 25 finish in six years.

16. Lazio (Ita) - Serie A third-place. Best finish since 2000.

17. Chivas de Guadalajara (Mex) - 2006/07 Apertura Winner; Clausura semifinalist; CONCACAF Champions Cup runner-up; Copa Sudamerica semifinalist. Best WCL finish since 1997.

18. Al-Ahly (Egy) - Egyptian League Winner; Egyptian Cup Winner; CAF Champions League runner-up. Third consecutive WCL Top 25 finish.

19. Lyon (Fra) - Ligue Un Winner. Fourth straight finish at number 19.

20. Gremio (Bra) - Copa Libertadores runner-up. First time in WCL Top 25 since 2002.

21. Benfica (Por) - BWIN Superliga third-place; UEFA Cup quarterfinalist. Fourth WCL Top 25 finish in five years.

22. PSV Eindhoven (Ned) - Eredivisie Winner; Champions League quarterfinalist; KNVB Beker Cup quarterfinalist. Eleventh WCL Top 25 in past fourteen years.

23. Sevilla (Esp) - UEFA Cup Winner; Copa Del Rey Winner; Primera Division third-place. First appearance in WCL Top 25 since 1960.

24. Arsenal (Eng) - Premiership fourth-place; Carling Cup runner-up. Tenth consencutive year in WCL Top 25.

25. Ajax (Ned) - KNVB Beker Cup Winner; Eredivisie runner-up. Thirtieth overall appearance in WCL Top 25, but only second since 1998.

In time, I'll post the rest of the Annual Top 25s, but for now, here are links to those that I have posted: 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963, 1964

Please Spam Me

(I know . . . be careful what you ask for.)

I'd like to add a blogroll, but I don't want just to list random blogs. Rather, I would like to add a blogroll consisting of blogs focusing on individual leagues (Premier League, La Liga, Serie A, MLS, etc.). Ideally, I would have links to the best blog I can find focusing on each individual league. I've done some surfing and found some good ones, but I would like to get some input, if I could. Do you have a great blog? If not, do you have some favorites for some particular leagues? At some point, I'll likely do another blogroll for teams, but for now I'm searching for league blogs. Please, spam away in the comments section or send me an e-mail. Thanks.

World Club Top 25 Schedule - December 30

We have a traditional West Indies schedule here at WCR. The only WCR Top 25 teams in action this weekend are British or Dutch. That's too bad for GolTV, who will have nothing but repeats to show this weekend.

All of the games/times shown below are on American television, Eastern Standard Time. Since I appear to get a number of hits from the U.K. (based upon Google and Yahoo! searches that go to my site), I'd love to add information about times/stations on which these games are televised in, say, London. If you have any suggestions as to where I can access British television schedules, please let me know.

Finally, don't forget that this weekend World Club Rankings will be posting the annual Top 25 for 2007 and announcing its 48th annual WCR Team of the Year. For now, on to the schedules.

Saturday, December 29
7:30 - (22) Rangers at Hibernian
10:00 - (2) Manchester United at West Ham United (Setanta)
10:00 - Newcastle United at (15) Chelsea (FSC)
12:15 - (6) Arsenal at Everton (FSC)

Sunday, December 30
6:30 - (19) Ajax at VVV (Setanta)
8:30 - (14) Feyenoord at Heerenveen
8:30 - NAC Breda at (24) PSV Eindhoven
11:00 - (6) Liverpool at Manchester City (FSC)

World Club Top 25 - Better Late Than Never

Well, flight delays, sub-par equipment and general holiday-related headaches are now behind me and its time for a belated World Club Rankings Top 25 list.

At the top, the big change is that Manchester United has taken over the top of the Premiership and this is reflected in the rankings. Likewise, Feyenoord has taken over the top of the Eredevisie and that is reflected as well, only not nearly as brightly. It was an exciting Boxing Day, which I hope you enjoyed because it promises to be a rather boring weekend with the possible exception of the Arsenal/Everton match, which could prove rather interesting. I assume you saw the Inter Milan / AC Milan match and the Real Madrid / Barcelona match, so there's not much more for me to comment on at the moment. Without any further delay (since there's been plenty already), on to the countdown!!!

World Club Rankings - December 26, 2007

1. Inter Milan (Ita) (1) - I get complaints that AC Milan is not in my lineup and I'm sympathetic to those. They're good enough, but the results aren't there. I also get complaints that Inter is number one. I am not sympathetic to those. If you think otherwise, you aren't watching Seire A. If you aren't watching Serie A, you shouldn't be commenting anyway.

2. Manchester United (Eng) (5) - The way both ManU and Arsenal have been playing over the past month, it was just a matter of time before Manchester United took over the Premiership lead. Personally, I don't care for either one, but I have to give the Red Devils their due.

3. Real Madrid (Esp) (3) - Big win over a depleted Barca team on Sunday. Is it too early to call their lead in La Liga insurmountable?

4. Porto (Por) (4) - Rough week this week in the BWIN Superliga, but they are still the cream of an underrated league. Should benefit by what looks, on paper at least, like an easy Round of 16 draw in the Champions League.

5. Roma (Ita) (6) - Talk about unfortunate. Drawing Real Madrid in the Round of 16. I wouldn't be shocked to see Roma pull an upset, but I'd rather expect them to lose in a nail-biter.

6. Arsenal (Eng) (2) - Couldn't score against Portsmouth and couldn't keep Manchester United from passing them in the Premiership. I think this team is better than AC Milan when it's clicking on all cylinders, but it hasn't been doing that recently. They need to find their early-season form sooner than later.

7. Juventus (Ita) (8) - Victory over Siena moves them up a notch in this week's chart. Will they be able to make Serie A a race this year or will Inter run away with it again. Either way, it's good to have you back, you cheating bastards.

8. Barcelona (Esp) (7) - Where have you gone Lionel Messi, a city turns its lonely eyes to you. Woo woo woo.

9. Lyon (Fra) (9) - Draw with Nancy Lorraine this weekend wasn't a big surprise. Frankly, it's about time we have a race in La Championnat. Olympique de Lyon has made a joke of it for far too long.

10. Sao Paulo (Bra) (10) - Remember them?

11. Benfica (Por) (11)
12. Liverpool (Eng) (20)
13. Bayern Munchen (Ger) (14)
14. Feyenoord (Ned) (NR)
15. Chelsea (Eng) (12)
16. Sporting CP (Por) (17)
17. Nancy Lorraine (Fra) (16)
18. Lanus (Arg) (19)
19. Ajax (Ned) (13)
20. Espanyol (Esp) (NR)
21. Werder Bremen (Ger) (22)
22. Rangers (Sco) (21)
23. Fiorentina (Ita) (24)
24. PSV Eindhoven (Ned) (18)
25. Santos Laguna (Mex) (NR)

Next Five (Alphabetically): Atletico de Madrid (Esp), Celtic (Sco), Everton (Eng), Udinese (Ita), Villarreal (Esp)

96-100: Alajuelense (Crc), DC United (USA), Newcastle United (Eng), Tottenham Hotspur (Eng), Huracan (Arg)

Games between Top 25 teams this week: Nada

God doesn't want me to post rankings this week until Wednesday

If you remember, yesterday God wanted me to watch football. Just as I attribute the responsibility of setting US Air's flight schedules to Him, I assume He is also responsible for the piss-poor facilities in which I have to work with here in Oxford, North Carolina this holiday weekend. Since the pre-WWII version of Excel that I have to work with here refuses to acknowledge the data from my spreadsheets, and I'm working on a computer that I assume has a 64-kb modem attached to it based upon the "speed" upon which it is moving, I have no choice but to believe that God wants me to wait until after the mid-week English matches are played on Wednesday before posting my next Top 25. I am scheduled to return to civilization Wednesday evening and, God willing of course, plan to post the most current Top 25 at that point. Also, if you've noticed, I've been posting Annual Top 25s, beginning in 1960. This weekend, I will be posting the 2007 Final Top 25 - which will not be a current snapshot of the Top 25 rankings, but rather it will be a ranking based on the most recent completed season (2006-2007 or 2007 depending on the league) for each team and the number one team will win the coveted WCR Team of the Year award. Stay tuned . . .

God Wants Me to Watch Football

It has become apparent to me that God wants me to watch football today. Frankly, who am I to go against the wishes of God. Thy Will be done!!!

A few weeks ago, I bought plane tickets to North Carolina to visit my family for Christmas. Thinking that if I traveled on Sunday, at least I'd get to see the Saturday games. I got tickets for today. At the time, I foolishly hadn't checked the schedule. I didn't realize that my flight was going to be during the Inter/AC derby. Also, since my sister doesn't get GolTV, there'd be no way for me to watch the Real Madrid/Barcelona match until I returned home after Christmas!!! (I need a Slingbox). Tragedy!!!

Now, I love my family. But I also love football. I thought (briefly) about rearranging the trip, but it would be too costly and I don't think my family would have understood. So, I set the DVR to tape the games this morning and went to the airport.

At about 8am (EST), there was an announcement on the loud speaker that my flight had been cancelled. (D'oh!!!) I get in line to get another flight and the attendant gave me the option of a 3:30 flight and a 4:55 flight. Instinctively, my first thought was to get the earliest possible flight - but wait - there's football on today!! So, I whip out my BlackBerry and open up this website in order to check the weekend schedule. Real/Barcelona at 1 pm . . . hmmmmm . . . if I get on the 4:55 flight, I can watch the game and get back to the airport in plenty of time to catch my flight.

Needless to say, I am now scheduled to fly out of DC at 4:55 this afternoon. Like I said above, I love my family. However, while I wouldn't cancel a trip home to see them to watch football, I will gladly blow them off for that extra 85 minutes in order to watch Real/Barcelona.

It's not always the case that God's will and my will are on parallel paths. I like to think that it's often the case, but who knows? But why else would God roll fog into DC anc cause my flight to be cancelled? And why else would he schedule a flight for the perfect time for me watch the Barca game? (Yes, I am assuming that God is responsible for scheduling US Air flights.) In this case, we are on the exact same wavelength. Call it a Christmas miracle. As an added bonus, I got home in time to watch the second half of the Newcastle/Derby County match on Setanta Broadband. Unfortunately, Derby just scored to take a 2-1 lead. (Like I said, God's will and my will are not always consistent with each other.)

Weekend Top 25 Schedule - 23 December

Once again, it's time for the weekly schedule of Top 25 teams. The games start Friday with Porto taking on Nacional on Setanta Broadband. Saturday's highlights include recently ranked Portsmouth visiting Liverpool on FSC and Lyon playing Nancy Lorraine. (If anybody has television information related to this game, please drop me a line.) Of course, the highlights of the weekend are on Sunday with AC Milan taking on top-ranked Inter Milan on FSC and, of course, Real Madrid visiting Barcelona on GolTV. As always, the times below are all EST and if you have additional information that I can post, I'd love to hear from you.

Friday, December 21
15:30 (4) Porto at Nacional (Setanta Broadband)

Saturday, December 22
7:45 Tottenham Hotspur at (2) Arsenal (Setanta)
10:00 Portsmouth at (20) Liverpool (FSC)
10:00 (23) Manchester City at Aston Villa (Setanta)
11:10 (9) Lyon at (16) Nancy Lorraine
13:30 Utrecht at (18) PSV Eindhoven
14:30 Reggina at (6) Roma (FSC)
15:30 Pacos de Ferreira at (17) Sporting CP (Setanta Broadband)

Sunday, December 23
6:30 (13) Ajax at Excelsior
7:00 Everton at (5) Manchester United (FSC) (Setanta)
9:00 Cagliari at (24) Fiorentina
9:00 AC Milan at (1) Internazionale (FSC)
9:00 Siena at (8) Juventus (FSC - Delayed)
9:00 Empoli at (25) Udinese
10:00 (21) Rangers at Aberdeen
11:00 Espanyol at (15) Atletico de Madrid (GolTV)
11:10 (12) Chelsea at Blackburn Rovers (FSC)
13:00 (3) Real Madrid at (7) Barcelona (GolTV)

World Club Rankings - 1964

Now seems like a good time to enter Volume 5 of what will be 48 volumes sometime next week and likely 49 volumes by the time this is completed. This edition is the first truly WORLD club rankings because, unlike 1960-1963, South American teams are added.

As you may have noticed, the primary entries on this blog are weekly Top 25s, but the formulas used were created primarily to determine annual rankings. The formulas are basically the same, however, the annual rankings include significant bonus points for finishing in the final four in the relevant continental championship. The rankings for 1964 include a lot of silverware as the winners of the Champion's Cup, Cup Winners Cup, Inter-Cities Fairs Cup and Copa Libertadores de America all find a spot on the chart, as well as national champions who did not participate in any of the Cup competitions, such as Bologna and Penarol. Internazionale kept up a Milanese tradition by winning the European championship despite not finishing at the top of Serie A. Hope you enjoy!!!

World Club Rankings - 1964

1. Real Madrid (Esp) (RU - Champions Cup)
2. Internazionale (Ita) (Winner - CC)
3. Santos (Bra) (SF - Copa Libertadores)
4. Benfica (Por) (2R - CC)
5. Penarol (Uru)
6. Nacional (Uru) (RU - CL)
7. Barcelona (Esp) (2R - Cup Winners Cup)
8. Independiente (Arg) (Winner - CL)
9. FC Zurich (Sui) (SF - CC)
10. Bologna (Ita)
11. Borussia Dortmund (FRG) (SF - CC)
12. Porto (Por) (1R - Inter-Cities Faris Cup)
13. Botafogo (Bra)
14. FC Koln (FRG) (SF - ICFC)
15. Rangers (Sco) (1R-CC)
16. Sporting CP (Por) (Winner - CWC)
17. AC Milan (Ita) (QF - CC)
18. Real Betis (Esp)
19. Rampla Juniors (Uru)
20. VSC Guimaraes (Por)
21. Meidericher SV (FRG)
22. Real Zaragoza (Esp) (Winner - ICFC)
23. Kilmarnock (Sco)
24. Celtic (Sco) (SF - CWC)
25. DWS (Ned)

Past Annual Rankings: 1960, 1961, 1962, 1963

World Club Top 25 - Inter, Arsenal, Real Madrid . . .

Congratulations to AC Milan for winning the Club World Cup. Even though you're still not in my Top 25, and probably will never be as long as you continue to be mired in mediocrity in the middle of Serie A. You may be the best "big game" team out there, but my chart is for "every day" teams.

I actually do feel bad for not having Olympiacos in my charts, but their national league's overrall rating sort of precludes that. It's very difficult to get into the charts if your league is not in the top dozen or so unless you are so dominant in your league that you can overcome the discrepency in national league rankings. With their victory today, Olympiakos tied AEK for first place, so the necessary dominance for a league ranked outside of the top dozen just isn't there. I hope they continue to advance in the Champions League, as that will increase the ranking of their national league.

The mathematical system that I originally developed was for use with final season statistics and results. This is the first time that I've tried to apply it on a weekly basis and I notice that it doesn't result in massive changes on a weekly basis. I'm going to try to keep this up again next week, but I'll be in North Carolina and I'm not sure what kind of access I'll have to everything I need. I just know that I won't have GolTV and Barcelona/Real Madrid on Sunday. My family better appreciate it . . .

I know it's a week early, but there's no games of any consequence tomorrow of which I'm aware, so I'm going a day early.

World Club Top 25 - December 17, 2007

1. Internazionale (Ita) (1) - Is the game really this easy? They look like adults playing with children. Okay, that may be going too far. They look like adults playing with adults who aren't nearly as good. AC Milan can go a long way towards finally hitting my list with a good game against Inter on Sunday.

2. Arsenal (Eng) (2) - Coming into this weekend, it was a four-team race in the Premiership. Now, it's a two-team race. Of the two, Arsenal is currently on top, so they're next on my list.

3. Real Madrid (Esp) (3) - Victory over Osasuna sets up an exciting match on Sunday with Barcelona. I won't be able to see it until after Christmas, so don't ruin it for me.

4. Porto (Por) (4) - No, I'm not Portuguese. I've heard commentators say that this team and Sevilla are the weakest of the group leaders in the Champions League, suggesting that Arsenal should hope that they get Porto in the first round. Be careful what you hope for, Arsenal.

5. Manchester United (Eng) (5) - Was it really any surprise that they were able to go to Anfield and beat Liverpool? The only surprise for me is that Arsenal has been able to hold them off this long.

6. Roma (Ita) (6) - Scored a draw against Manchester United this week in Champions League action. I know the game was meaningless, but it still demonstrates how good this team can be. So does being second in Serie A.

7. Barcelona (Esp) (8) - What a horrible time to lose one of the two or three best players in the world in Lionel Messi. Looks like he'll be out for over a month. If they can keep pace in La Liga until he returns, they will be in good shape to make another deep Champions League run.

8. Juventus (Ita) (7) - Might be in good shape to make a deep Coppa Italia run, but that's it. I don't think they'll catch Inter and they're not eligible for anything else. Serves you right, you cheating bastards.

9. Lyon (Fra) (9) - Timely stellar play against Rangers to make the CL Round of 16. Not playing well recently in Ligue 1 action heading in to Saturday's match against second-place Nancy Lorraine.

10. Sao Paulo (Bra) (11) - What can I say? Not much, really. See you in the other CL (Copa Libertadores).

11. Benfica (Por) (10)
12. Chelsea (Eng) (12)
13. Ajax (Ned) (14)
14. Bayern Munchen (Ger) (13)
15. Atletico de Madrid (Esp) (16)
16. Nancy Lorraine (Fra) (17)
17. Sporting CP (Por) (25)
18. PSV Eindhoven (Ned) (19)
19. Lanus (Arg) (18)
20. Liverpool (Eng) (15)
21. Rangers (Sco) (NR)
22. Werder Bremen (Ger) (23)
23. Manchester City (Eng) (NR)
24. Fiorentina (Ita) (24)
25. Udinese (Ita) (21)

Next Five (Alphabetically): Celtic (Sco), Everton (Eng), Santos Laguna (Mex), Villarreal (Esp), Vitoria Setubal (Por)

Others of Note: (32) Atletico Nacional, (42) AC Milan, (52) Girondins Bordeaux (Fra), (62) Schalke 04 (Ger), (72) Sampdoria

Games this week among Top 25 Teams:
19 Dec. - (20) Liverpool at (12) Chelsea (Carling Cup)
22 Dec. - (9) Lyon at (16) Nancy Lorraine
23 Dec. - (3) Real Madrid at (7) Barcelona

Calling All Rankers (Revisited)

It's been about a month since my last recruitment effort, so I thought I'd try again.

As if you couldn't tell, I have an overwhelming urge to rank soccer teams. The urge is so overwhelming that I even bought a domain name on which my addiction can prosper. I know I'm not alone with this affliction because our friends at Soccer Source show signs of the same addiction.

What about you? Do you have a similar addiction? Do you blog/write or otherwise have some forum in which you seek therapy by ranking world club teams? If so, let either me or Soccer Source know. We are trying to put together a group of pollsters in order to put together a consensus Top 25. If you're interested, feel free to leave a comment or send me an e-mail.

Weekend Top 25 Schedule - W/E 16 December

Well, it's that time of the week again, so below are the weekend schedules for the World Club Rankings Top 25. All times below are EST. If you have any other information regarding television schedules, domestically or worldwide, that you'd like to share, leave me a comment or send me an e-mail. Otherwise, I hope somebody finds the info below helpful.

Saturday, December 15

9:30 - (13) Bayern Munchen at Hertha Berlin (GolTV - Delayed)

9:30 - Bayer Leverkusen at (23) Werder Bremen (GolTV)

10:00 - Tottenham Hotspur at (20) Portsmouth (Setanta - Delayed)

11:10 - Nice at (9) Lyon

12:00 - (21) Udinese at Catania

14:30 -(7) Juventus at Lazio (FSC)

14:30 - (10) Benfica at Os Belenenses

15:45 - Vitoria Guimaraes at (4) Porto (Setanta Broadband)

16:00 - (8) Barcelona at Valencia (GolTV)

Sunday, December 16

6:30 - (19) PSV Eindhoven at (14) Ajax (Setanta)

8:30 - (5) Manchester United at (15) Liverpool (Setanta)

9:00 - (6) Roma at Torino (FSC)

9:00 - (24) Fiorentina at Sampdoria

9:00 - (22) Celtic at Inverness

11:00 - (12) Chelsea at (2) Arsenal (FSC)

12:00 - (17) Nancy Lorraine at Strasbourg (Setanta)

13:00 - (16) Atletico de Madrid at Recreativo Huelva (GolTV)

14:30 - (1) Internazionale at Cagliari (FSC)

15:00 - Osasuna at (3) Real Madrid (GolTV)

15:00 - (25) Sporting CP at Maritimo

World Club Top 25 - Still Inter at Top? Of course . . .

Is this getting boring yet? Inter has been number one the entire season and it doesn't look like there are any serious threats any time soon. It looked for a while like Arsenal might be a threat but, all of a sudden, but now Arsenal's supremacy in England is under serious scrutiny.

And now a brief discussion of this week's anomalies. Arsenal looked very bad, but didn't move down. The same can be said for Lyon, Fiorentina (much) and Werder Bremen. The reason for this is that this list is not intended as a snapshot of how did teams in the past week (otherwise, Borussia Dortmund could be number one) or how I expect them to do this week. Rather, its based upon on how each team has done since the beginning of the current season. Therefore, as the season matures, changes become less frequent because each game means less with respect to its importance to the whole season. That being said, if you are jumping up and down your domestic league's standings, you will jump around my charts. I'm looking at you Liverpool . . .

World Club Rankings - December 10, 2007

1. Internazionale (Ita) (1) - I still rank Serie A as one of the best leagues in the world. Am I wrong? I have to ask because Inter recently has looked like men playing against children. Outscored Lazio and Torino by an aggregate score of 7-0. Sure, it's not like they're playing Chelsea and Arsenal, but it's also not like they're playing Derby County and Birmingham City, either.

2. Arsenal (Eng) (2) - Yes, I saw the games against Newcastle United (GO NUFC!!!) and 'Boro. No, they did not move down as a result. Yes, Arsenal is surviving near the top based upon points they picked up earlier in the year. No, that point surplus will not keep them up here much longer if they keep up this current stretch.

3. Real Madrid (Esp) (3) - There is little doubt that they belong to be ranked this high, yet there is a possibility that they can be eliminated from the Champions League this week. (I believe that's true. I'm doing this from memory.)

4. Porto (Por) (4) - A pair of interesting games this week. Playing Besiktas for their Champions League lives and then Victoria Guimaraes, who just missed this week's charts. Both games are at home, where Porto has been downright scary all year.

5. Manchester United (Eng) (5) - Beat up on Derby County this week, but who hasn't. I'm just glad they scored the three-goal victory because that's what I had playing I Know The Score. Playing on the road at Roma and at Liverpool this week. Guess that's what they get for getting a week semi-off this past week.

6. Roma (Ita) (6) - Picked up another four points this week and remain a solid second in Serie A. Too bad the Manchester United game this week is meaningless.

7. Juventus (Ita) (7) - Wouldn't it be cool if we could have replaced Lazio in the Champions League with Juventus? Too bad the team is run by cheating bastards.

8. Barcelona (Esp) (8) - Could be an interesting match at Valencia this weekend even though Valencia doesn't look nearly as good this year as they did last year. Already gearing up for the Real Madrid game on the 23rd.

9. Lyon (Fra) (9) - Yes, they lost this week, but I am sure they don't care. The important game for Lyon comes this week at Rangers. Lyon should be favored, but it's never easy to win in Scotland and I wouldn't be shocked in bad things happened.

10. Benfica (Por) (11) - FINALLY!!! Something changed from last week. Benfica won a Portugal Cup game this week, but the reason they moved up had more to do with Reading's good play than Benfica's.

11. Sao Paulo (Bra) (12)

12. Chelsea (Eng) (16)

13. Bayern Munchen (Ger) (14)

14. Ajax (Ned) (17)

15. Liverpool (Eng) (10)

16. Atletico de Madrid (Esp) (19)

17. Nancy Lorraine (Fra) (15)

18. Lanus (Arg) (18)

19. PSV Eindhoven (Ned) (13)

20. Portsmouth (Eng) (NR)

21. Udinese (Ita) (24)

22. Celtic (Sco) (21)

23. Werder Bremen (Ger) (22)

24. Fiorentina (Ita) (23)

25. Sporting CP (Por) (NR)

Next Five (alphabetically) : Atletico Nacional (Col), Feyenoord (Ned), Fluminense (Bra), Santos Laguna (Mex), Vitoria Guimaraes (Por)

Numbers 51 to 55 (just for fun): Giordins Bordeaux (Fra), Maritimo (Por), Argentinos Juniors (Arg), Danubio (Uru), Valenciennes (Fra)

Games Between Top 25 Teams This Week:

12/12 - (1) Internazionale at (19) PSV Eindhoven

12/12 - (5) Manchester United at (6) Roma

12/16 - (12) Chelsea at (2) Arsenal

12/16 - (5) Manchester United at (15) Liverpool

12/16 - (19) PSV Eindhoven at (14) Ajax

World Club Rankings - 1963

If you've come here looking for this weekend's schedule for the Top 25, as advertised by our generous friends at Soccer Source, click here. If you've come here looking for the most recent World Club Rankings Top 25 list, click here. If you've come here looking for the home of the greatest half smoke on the planet, click here. But that's neither here nor there.

It's been a few weeks since I've posted one of my annual Top 25s. Since I have another 44 to go, it's probably about time that I do another. 1963 was a very good year. I wasn't born yet, so I'm just guessing, really. AC Milan won one of its many European titles without winning the Italian title. Sound familiar? It's a recurring theme in these annual rankings.

For the Europhiles out there, enjoy. This is the final annual ranking that I have with only European teams. Beginning in 1964, I have enough data to include Western Hemisphere teams. For now, enjoy the 1963 rankings.

World Club Rankings - Top 25 - 1963

1. Benfica (Por) (RU - Champion's Cup)

2. Real Madrid (Esp) (1R - CC)

3. Internazionale (Ita)

4. AC Milan (Ita) (Winner - CC)

5. Borussia Dortmund (FRG)

6. Porto (Por) (1R - Inter Cities Fairs Cup)

7. Atletico de Madrid (Esp) (RU - Cup Winners' Cup)

8. Rangers (Sco) (1R - CWC)

9. FC Koln (FRG) (1R-CC)

10. Sporting CP (Por) (2R-CC)

11. AS Monaco (Fra)

12. Juventus (Ita)

13. Kilmarnock (Sco)

14. FK Austria (Aut) (2R-CC)

15. Nurnberg (FRG) (SF - CWC)

16. Everton (Eng) (1R - ICFC)

17. Feyenoord (Ned) (SF - CC)

18. Tottenham Hotspur (Eng) (Winner - CWC)

19. Stade Reims (Fra) (QF - CC)

20. Real Oviedo (Esp)

21. FC Zurich (Sui)

22. Dundee (Sco) (SF - CC)

23. Os Belenenses (Por) (1R - ICFC)

24. Galatasaray (Tur) (QF - CC)

25. Standard Liege (Bel)

The prior years in this series can be found here: 1960, 1961, 1962

World Club Top 25 Schedule - W/E 9 Dec 07

As you know, this is pretty much a no-frills Top 25 blog. We have rankings . . . boy do we have rankings . . . weekly rankings, annual rankings, other rankings that I haven't posted yet . . . but not a lot of other frills.

If anybody has any frills they'd like to suggest, please let me know and I'll accommodate as best I can. In the meantime, I plan to continue to post weekend schedules for Top 25 teams. In addition, I'm also adding which of the three soccer stations that I get (GolTV, FSC, Setanta), if applicable. (I realize there are other international stations that I get over the internet - CCTV5, Guangdong, SIPTV, etc. I don't know where to get schedules for these stations. If anybody knows, let me know and I'll add those to the weekly schedule list, as well.) The most recent Top 25 can be found here. Their weekend schedule can be found below:

Friday, December 7
14:30 Roda JC at (13) PSV Eindhoven
14:30 (4) Porto at Chayes (Portugal Cup)

Saturday, December 8
9:30 MSV Duisburg at (14) Bayern Munchen (GolTV - Delayed)
9:30 (22) Werder Bremen at Hannover 96 (GolTV)
10:00 Derby County at (5) Manchester United (Setanta)
10:00 Sunderland at (16) Chelsea (FSC)
10:00 St. Mirren at (21) Celtic
12:15 (10) Liverpool at Reading (FSC)
13:30 (17) Ajax at Willem II
14:00 Valenciennes at (15) Nancy Lorraine
14:00 (9) Lyon at Caen
14:30 (23) Fiorentina at Palermo
16:00 (3) Real Madrid at Athletic Bilbao (GolTV)

Sunday, December 9
8:30 (2) Arsenal at Middlesbrough (Setanta)
9:00 Torinao at (1) Inter Milan (FSC -Delayed)
9:00 Atalanta at (7) Juventus (FSC)
9:00 (6) Roma at Livorno
9:00 Sampdoria at (24) Udinese
11:00 Real Betis at (20) Villarreal
13:00 Getafe at (19) Atletico de Madrid (GolTV)
15:00 Deportivo la Coruna at (8) Barcelona (GolTV)
15:45 Academica Coimbra at (11) Benfica (Portugal Cup)

World Club Top 25 - Inter Continues To Roll

So, if Inter Milan is the number one team and the subject of the title, why do you have an Arsenal picture to go along with the article? Well, Inter has been number one every week and there are only so many Inter photos in my arsenal, no pun intended. I think I'll rotate themed pictures among the current Top Ten teams from week to week.

A lot of interesting games this past week. Think my favorite had to be the Celtic/Shakhtar game, and I'm not even a Celtic fan. Beautiful finish, though. Beautiful finish.

Some weird things in my charts this week. Liverpool won two games by a combined 8-1 score, yet dropped a notch. To the contrary, Nancy Lorraine and Santos Laguna (I think they're distant cousins) both moved up after a loss, with S.L. making its Top 25 debut. Better untimely than never, as I always say.

Uninteresting fact of the week is that there is not a single game in the upcomping week between Top 25 teams. None. Nada. This following a week of Inter - Firoentina, Porto - Benfica and Roma - Udinese, not to mention the Champion's League games. Well, I hoped you enjoyed the feast and you're ready for the upcoming famine.

World Club Top 25 - December 3, 2007

1. Inter Milan (Ita) (1) - Another dominant week for Inter, beating Fenerbahce and Fiorentina by a combined 5-0. I'm thankful because when I touted them last year, people complained that they were successful because of the Juventus demotion. They are proving this year that last year's record-setting performance was not a fluke.

2. Arsenal (Eng) (2) - Lost a meaningless game against Sevilla and then won a meaningful one at Aston Villa. All of the Premiership games are meaningful when you have Manchester United breathing down your neck. Here's to Newcastle doing better against Arsenal than they did against Liverpool!!

3. Real Madrid (Esp) (3) - Blew a big opportunity at Werder Bremen in Champion's League action. Now have to come through against Lazio or face an embarassing exit from the tournament.

4. Porto (Por) (4) - Crushed by Liverpool in CL action, but bounced back well to knock off Benfica on the road.

5. Manchester United (Eng) (6) - Keep flip-flopping spots with Roma on the charts. Sent Sporting CP packing from the Top 25 in CL action. Face the mighty powerhouse from Derby County on Saturday. Hope I'm jinxing them.

6. Roma (Ita) (5) - Drop a notch despite beating Dinamo Kiev and a ranked Udinese. Mired in a great second level (only Inter Milan is in the first level) in Serie A.

7. Juventus (Ita) (7) - Still have three of the top seven in Serie A. Played well in Milan in drawing AC 0-0.

8. Barcelona (Esp) (14) - Move back up into the neighborhood they belong despite winning a single game. Still and all, played well in drawing Lyon in France and took over second place in La Liga with the sudden demise of Villarreal.

9. Lyon (Fra) (11) - Well, I guess it sort of makes sense that you should be close to the team you tied during the week. And I also guess that if you can't get a victory at home in the match, you should be behind that team. I call it symmetry.

10. Liverpool (Eng) (9) - Awesome week and still moved down. First team to beat Porto all year and, all of a sudden, look to have a good chance to advance in the Champion's League.

11. Benfica (Por) (8)

12. Sao Paulo (Bra) (10)

13. PSV Eindhoven (Ned) (17)

14. Bayern Munchn (Ger) (13)

15. Nancy Lorraine (Fra) (16)

16. Chelsea (Eng) (23)

17. Ajax (Ned) (12)

18. Lanus (Arg) (24)

19. Atletico de Madrid (Esp) (NR)

20. Villarreal (Esp) (15)

21. Celtic (Sco) (19)

22. Werder Bremen (Ger) (21)

23. Fiorentina (Ita) (20)

24. Udinese (Ita) (22)

25. Santos Laguna (Mex) (NR)

Next Five (Alphabetically): Feyenoord (Ned), Fluminense (Bra), Santos (Bra), Sporting CP (Por), Vitoria Guimaraes (Por)

101-105: St. Etienne (Fra), Stade Rennais (Fra), Torino (Ita), Slavia Prague (Czc), Petrojet Cairo (Egy)

Matches between Top 25 Teams:

Absolute Zero