Fun with international club rankings

How would Atlanta or the New York teams fare in other leagues? How about the Colorado Rapids?

We have no idea. But FiveThirtyEight runs its statistical magic on such things, so why not play around with the data and do some projecting?

First, let’s take a look at all the leagues whose clubs are in the rankings and compare them three ways:

Mean (average)
Median
Sum of top five (the “cross-country meet” scoring system)

This is what we get, sorted by mean …

LEAGUE	COUNTRY	MEAN	MEDIAN	TOP 5
La Liga	Spain	45.3	36.0	59
Bundesliga	Germany	52.7	46.5	87
Premier League	England	80.0	87.0	42
Serie A	Italy	93.1	99.0	58
Ligue 1	France	108.0	108.5	159
Russia PL	Russia	148.4	121.0	248
Brasileirão	Brazil	207.3	207.0	503
Superliga	Argentina	223.3	206.0	546
Süper Lig	Turkey	223.7	243.5	339
Primeira Liga	Portugal	229.4	261.5	381
Super League	Switzerland	237.4	251.0	668
Liga MX	Mexico	257.8	264.5	848
La Liga 2	Spain	261.5	243.5	818
Bund (Austria)	Austria	268.3	276.0	797
Eredivisie	Netherlands	285.6	323.5	430
2. Bundesliga	Germany	294.7	312.0	1075
Championship	England	303.8	335.5	842
Allsvenskan	Sweden	331.2	379.0	820
Ligue 2	France	340.3	383.5	951
Serie B	Italy	349.0	386.0	1089
MLS	USA	363.3	376.0	1277
Eliteserien	Norway	366.9	400.0	1168
Premiership	Scotland	368.7	423.0	1286

The top MLS team in the rankings is Atlanta United (213), then NYCFC (231, pending a likely loss to Seattle in a few minutes) and the New York Red Bulls (234). Here’s how Atlanta would stack up in each league.

2nd: Scottish Premiership
3rd: 2. Bundesliga (Germany)
3rd: Eliteserien (Norway)
3rd: Ligue 2 (France)
3rd: Serie B
4th: Austrian Bundesliga
5th: Premeira Liga (Portugal)
6th: Allsvenskan (Sweden)
6th: Eredivisie
6th: Championship (England — in the playoffs!)
6th: Super League (Switzerland)
7th: Liga MX (also in the playoffs, maybe)
9th: Süper Lig (Turkey)
10th: La Liga 2
13th: Brasileirão
14th: Russian Premier League
16th: Superliga (Argentina)
20th: Ligue 1 (ahead of Metz)
20th: Serie A (ahead of Verona)
Last: Bundesliga, La Liga, Premier League

The 10th-ranked team in MLS is LAFC at 356th. How would they rank elsewhere?

5th: Scottish Premiership
6th: Eliteserien (Norway)
8th: Austrian Bundesliga
8th: Allsvenskan (Sweden)
9th: Super League (Switzerland)
9th: Ligue 2 (France)
10th: Serie B
11th: Eredivisie
15th: Russian Premier League (ahead of two)
16th: 2. Bundesliga (Germany)
17th: Championship (England)
17th: Süper Lig (Turkey)
18th: Liga MX (ahead of Veracruz)
20th: La Liga 2 (has 22 teams, so ahead of three)
27th: Superliga (Argentina)
Last: Bundesliga, La Liga, Premier League, Brasileirão, Ligue 1, Premeira Liga (Portugal, barely), Serie A

Colorado is ranked 449th. They would finish last in each league except Ligue 2, Allsvenskan (Sweden), Eredivisie (??!!), Scottish Premiership, Eliteserien (Norway) and the Super Lig (Turkey). They wouldn’t be relegated in Sweden or Scotland. Everywhere else, they’re second- or third-tier.