Oh, really? You can sure provide some statistics to back that bold claim up.
I don't have stats to back up my claim, just anecdotal evidence and experience. Serie A in its hey days, the dual powerhouses of Milan, especially AC Milan, and Juve definitely attracted more fans and players. Here in China, a lot more Serie A fans than Buli fans, I'd say and still to this days, given their recent struggles the Big 3 in Serie A still have a huge following.
But okay, I'll bite. Just to highlight what rubbed me wrong the most:
Again, I don't have any stats to back up, just some thoughts:
Revenue: Part of the revenue comes from TV contracts and jersey sales. Given EPL's and ManU's huge popularity around the world, I am not surprised that they get more money from TV contracts, after all EPL games are broadcasted almost everywhere, not the case with Bundesliga. In terms of jersey sales, they are only behind Real Madrid as the 2nd place, if I call (or 3rd, behind us as well?).
Ownership and the stadium: Agreed with jamrock, not sure how this is relevant. Especially stadium, I mean for example a super rich guy from any country can build the biggest, state-of-art stadium in the world, it doesn't make his team any better or worse.
Historical success and prestige: Yes Bayern has two more CL trophies than ManU (heck, for the sake of the argument, not only Real Madrid, AC Milan, Liverpool and Bayern had all had more CL trophies than we do
, and their domestic achievements are neck to neck, but in terms of prestige (similar to popularity in my opinion), ManU is definitely ahead of Bayern.
Current ranking: I think it does play into evaluating a club's success, but it is a moving target, neverthless one can definitely say Bayern is more successful than ManU lately.
I genuinely think non-German speaking players today still favor joining Real Madrid, Barca, and the EPL powerhouses over Bayern if everything else being equal. And that's not Bayern's fault, it is just that overall Bundesliga has a much smaller impact and exposure to the rest of the world compared to EPL, La Liga and Serie A. But things certainly can change, if Bayern, BVB and other Buli teams keep their current trajectory, Buli as a whole will be more visible globally, and Bayern will become more popular among both fans and players. 10 years from now, things could be a lot different.
