Success is improving and maintaining our showing in Europe each year. While it can be annoying and obsessive, the co-efficient is the only realistic measure of how one country does versus another. For me, when we talk about success we should be looking at about 5 year intervals. Where was the league 10 years ago? Where was it 5 years ago, and where is it now.
In 2000 Ireland was ranked 41st of the European leagues. This year we were ranked 35th. To me that's an improvement. If we break it further down, then success is climbing the ladder with consistent results every year, not one fantastic year and then 3 terrible years. For the last 4 years we have consistently added 1 point or more to the coefficient. In the previous 5 years, we had 1 year where 1 point or more was added - this is progress and success.
Obviously this isn't enough for Mark12345 and his friends, but we are never going to compete directly with other bigger leagues in Europe we don't have the money or interest in this country. But we're not hte only country in that position. I would imagine that if there is a foot.fr equivalent, there is probably a Marc12345 on there complaining about the standard of Ligue 1 and saying that it's rubbish and they won't do very well in Europe. It's all a matter of perspective and if you judge everything by the top 2/3 leagues then obviously all the rest are going to come up short. The important thing for the LOI is to keep pushing to improve its structures, its quality and its results against other leagues. Ill thought out rants and WUMs of Mark's ilk aren't going to do anything for the league or convince football fans to start following one money making company in England over another one.
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