The Curse of Anfield might finally be in the past. Sunday's epic 4-2 comeback win at Atletico Madrid pushed Barcelona back into first place in the LaLiga table and kept Hansi Flick's squad unbeaten across all competitions in 2025. ESPN BET currently lists them as the favorites to win LaLiga and the Champions League. They've already won the Spanish Super Cup in 2025, and they're still alive in the semifinals of the Copa del Rey.
A four-trophy season is within reach, and in the world of club soccer, perhaps only PSG is in better form than Barcelona at the moment.
Barca's current Elo rating at ClubElo.com is as high as it's been since May 7, 2019. That's the day they took a three-goal lead to Liverpool in the Champions League semifinals and left with a 4-0 loss. (Elo ratings basically amount to a point exchange. Beat a lesser opponent, and you take a few points from them; beat a better opponent, and you take more.)
In 2018-19, Barca headed to Anfield with a chance to win four trophies. They have only won three since. But despite themselves -- despite constantly spending money they don't have, despite only hiring Flick after begging Xavi to remain the manager and then basically firing him for being pessimistic -- they have put together an utterly thrilling team to watch. Just as he did in his first season at Bayern Munich (when the German giants won their last Champions League title), Flick has brought an immediate jolt of passion and energy, and it looks great on Barca.
With its attacking, pressing, extreme ball control and a high defensive line that usually dominates but occasionally suffers chaotic glitches, Flick's style of play is spectacularly fun to watch. In fact, it has made Barca the most watchable team in European soccer.
OK, you've figured out where this is going: It's time for the annual Watchability rankings! For years now, I've been applying numbers to aesthetics, using a combination of stats that measure quality, scoring prowess, defensive intensity, verticality, switches and through-balls, match tension and openness against good teams to gauge who the most enjoyable teams in Europe are.
Oh, and this season, I've added "performance while trailing" to the watchability machine as well. There's nothing more watchable than a good comeback, right?
Beginning last season, I applied a similar algorithm to individual matches to look at the most entertaining single games of a given year. You already know that Barca ranks No. 1 on the teams list, but let's dive into everything else.
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The most watchable matches in Europe to date
(Note: For general unwieldiness reasons, I looked only at all matches that have taken place in Europe's Big Five leagues and all three major UEFA competitions for this section. My apologies to that ridiculous 4-4 Copa del Rey match between Barca and Atletico a couple of weeks ago. It probably would have ranked No. 1 had it been included.)
1. Bayer Leverkusen 2-1 Eintracht Frankfurt, Oct. 19. This match had just about everything you could possibly want: 36 total shots (27 from Bayer Leverkusen), the customary early Leverkusen deficit, missed penalties, made penalties, a particularly strutty Victor Boniface goal -- that's not in the Watchability algorithm, but it should be -- and late scoring chances for both sides after Boniface's go-ahead score. A dynamite match all around.
2. Villarreal 4-3 Celta de Vigo, Aug. 26. This one's a bit of a deep cut, but it featured 44 combined shots, two blown Celta Vigo leads, one blown Villarreal lead and a game-winning Dani Parejo goal, off of a rebounded penalty, in the 10th minute of extra time.
3. Champions League: Real Madrid 3-2 Manchester City, Feb. 11. The first leg of these bluebloods' Champions League round-of-24 tie was chaotic in a way that many City matches and many Real Madrid Champions League matches have been. Erling Haaland's 80th-minute goal gave City the lead, but Brahim Diaz and Jude Bellingham scored in a six-minute span to give the defending European champions the advantage going back to the Bernabeu.
4. Lyon 4-3 Strasbourg, Aug. 30. Some more early-season chaos. This match featured a combined 35 shots worth 5.6 xG, and Strasbourg took the lead on three separate occasions before two Gift Orban goals -- his only two of the season with Lyon before a midseason loan to Hoffenheim -- gave one of Europe's more watchable teams a wild win.
5. Champions League: Real Madrid 3-2 Atalanta, Dec. 10. Real Madrid go through the motions in LaLiga at times, but they've been nonstop entertainment in the Champions League, and playing against a Watchability stalwart in Atalanta brought out the best in them for a while. Trailing 3-1 after 60 minutes, Atalanta loaded up the pressure but could only pull one goal back. Mateo Retegui missed a point-blank attempt in the 94th minute.
6. Marseille 3-2 Lyon, Feb. 2. Arguably the most bitter derby in France produced a legendary second half: In the final 40 minutes, both l'OM and l'OL came back from a goal down before Luis Henrique's 85th-minute strike from short range gave Marseille their second 3-2 win over Lyon this season.
7. Inter Milan 4-4 Juventus, Oct. 27. Juve don't exactly lit up the scoreboards, but they found a way through Inter's typically strong defense, falling behind 4-2 only to tie things up with two late goals from substitute Kenan Yildiz in a match that featured 28 shots worth a combined 5.1 xG.
8. Champions League: AC Milan 3-1 Real Madrid, Nov. 5. Put "Real Madrid" and "Champions League" together and it seduces the watchability formula. This match featured 37 total shots worth 5.2 xG, and in the middle of a disappointing campaign, AC Milan came out on top on the road thanks to goals from Alvaro Morata and Tijani Reijnders.
Gab & Juls discuss reports suggesting Real Madrid are interested in signing Martín Zubimendi.
9. Liverpool 6-3 Tottenham Hotspur, Dec. 22. Typically when a team scores six goals, it comes with some spectacularly hot finishing and xG overachievement. But Liverpool did it by simply creating huge chance after huge chance, finishing with 24 shots worth 5.6 xG. Liverpool led by at least two goals for 50 minutes, but this one still found a place on the list because goals are fun.
10. Champions League: Real Madrid 5-2 Borussia Dortmund, Oct. 22. Just two weeks before the loss to AC Milan, Real Madrid were on the ropes again at home as BVB, looking for revenge for the 2024 Champions League final, took a 2-0 lead into the final 30 minutes. But then came the collapse. Real Madrid scored twice in three minutes to tie, then scored three times in 10 late minutes to somehow turn a nail-biter into a comfortable win.
Nos. 11-20:
11. Liverpool 3-2 Southampton, Nov. 24
12. Paris Saint-Germain 4-1 Rennes, March 8
13. Lille 3-3 Strasbourg, Sept. 21
14. Champions League: Barcelona 3-2 Borussia Dortmund, Dec. 11
15. Bayern Munich 3-3 Eintracht Frankfurt, Oct. 6
16. Manchester City 3-2 Fulham, Oct. 5
17. PSG 4-2 Monaco, Dec. 18
18. Liverpool 3-3 Newcastle, Dec. 4
19. Conference League: Jagiellonia Bialystok 3-3 Celje, Nov. 28
20. Champions League: Barcelona 5-4 Benfica, Jan. 21
Out of pure curiosity, I had to look up the Jagiellonia-Celje match, which I am ashamed to say I did not watch live. Both teams led at one point, there were four goals in a late 30-minute period and the match produced one of the most perfect momentum charts you'll ever see.
Back, forth, back, forth, back, forth. Celje tied it up with a late own goal, too. Pure Conference League magic.
The most watchable teams in Europe's Big Five leagues to date
With all due respect to Jagiellonia and Celje, we're going to stick to the Big Five leagues when it comes to ranking Europe's most watchable teams. Here they are, from No. 1 to No. 96.
Clear room in your schedule to always watch (Grade: 9.1-10.0)
Alex Kirkland explains why Hansi Flick's high line has been so successful for Barcelona.
1. Barcelona (9.5). Barca have spent most of 2024-25 in dominant form: They won 14 of their first 16 matches, and after a bumpy (and watchable!) patch in the late fall, they haven't lost since Dec. 21. But they're winning in intensely fun fashion, too. Their high defensive line, which risks breakaways but keeps everyone closer to the ball and draws lots of offsides, is the equivalent to walking a high wire, and they choose to do it even when they don't need to.
When this works, it produces lopsided results. They've won 11 matches by at least four goals this season, including a 4-0 stomping of Real Madrid in October in which they drew Real Madrid attackers (mainly Kylian Mbappe) offside 12 times. And in an era in which fewer teams play such a bold style, Barcelona just continues to go for it.
No one else in the Big Five is averaging more than four offsides drawn per game in league play; Barca is averaging nearly six. This produces spells of dominance, but the glitches are perhaps even more watchable than the successes.
My favorite match of the season was the aforementioned 4-4 draw with Atletico, in which they blew a late 4-2 lead by continuing to play high and attempting to dominate the tilt of the pitch, allowing Atleti some prime counterattacking opportunities. Dominance combined with a strong element of danger: That's what the Watchability rankings were made for.
Oh, and by the way: Enjoy it while you can. Just as Flick's second Bayern team suffered far more glitches than his first, most of the teams that prove this good at drawing opponents offside can't do it twice. Among the Big Five leagues, only nine teams have averaged at least 3.74 offsides drawn per game in a season going back to 2018-19. Each of those nine teams drew fewer offsides the next year, and eight of nine regressed by an average of 0.39 points per game (about 15 points over a 38-game season).
It's hard to pull off a perfect high-wire act, and it's evidently even harder to do it twice. But hey, a few more glitches might make them even more watchable, right?
Ale Moreno says the departure of Kylian Mbappe to Real Madrid has enabled Luis Enrique to turn PSG into a stronger team overall.
2. Paris Saint-Germain (9.5). The No. 2 team on the Champions League favorites' list is also the No. 2 team on this list. PSG have been almost perfect over the past four months, winning 21 of their past 24 matches with two draws and only one loss, to Liverpool on March 5. (In case you missed it, they countered that loss by eliminating Liverpool from the Champions League in the return leg a week later.)
Ousmane Dembele has scored 24 goals in this span alone, Goncalo Ramos has scored 13, sterling young wingers Bradley Barcola and Desire Doue have combined for 15 goals and 20 assists, and January addition Khvicha Kvaratskhelia from Napoli has eased in with two goals and three assists in 942 minutes. Former Barca manager Luis Enrique has figured out exactly what to do with a young and impossibly fast and energetic squad. Only a lack of directness in attack kept them below Barcelona on this list.
3. Lyon (9.4). They press successfully, they sometimes let opponents press successfully too, they score a ton, and the only two matches they've lost since hiring Paulo Fonseca were exceedingly watchable 3-2 decisions against PSG and Marseille. If I had included a "Your manager is so wound up that he gets himself suspended for months for ref abuse" factor in the algorithm, they would have ranked even higher.
4. Liverpool (9.4). They're fading a bit, and their defense has been a little too consistent to rank too high on this scale, but the likely Premier League champions are comeback kings -- they're averaging 1.47 points per game from trailing positions, worse than only PSG -- and they have created as many high-quality scoring chances as anyone in Europe for the season.
5. Bayern München (9.3). Vincent Kompany doesn't deploy nearly as high a defensive line as former Bayern man Hansi Flick, but Bayern still inflict loads of defensive pressure, score tons of goals and very much benefit from my love of through-balls: No one in the Big Five completes more of them in a given match.
6. Chelsea (9.3). Granted, their score would have been higher had I created this list a month or two ago, before injuries took away a large number of Chelsea attackers. (They've scored multiple goals just twice in their last seven matches.) But Enzo Maresca's young squad still plays with solid defensive intensity and a high line and completes plenty of through-balls. And in theory, they'll start scoring again at some point, especially when Cole Palmer and Nicolas Jackson are back in the team.
Gab Marcotti and Julien Laurens react to Chelsea signing Geovany Quenda and Dario Essugo from Sporting in deals worth up to $81 million.
7. Real Madrid (9.3). As mentioned above, Real Madrid haven't been incredibly entertaining in LaLiga, but they've been a ridiculously good time in the competition they care most about, the Champions League. They easily have the highest average Watchability score in the competition, they're fifth in average goals scored and better yet, they're also 15th in goals allowed.
Even their most recent match, which resulted in a penalty shootout win over Atletico Madrid, wasn't "watchable" per this scale (120 minutes, one goal), but it was ridiculously intense. They might not win the Champions League, but they're a major reason why this year's tournament has been so much fun.
8. Eintracht Frankfurt (9.2). Their attack has predictably suffered a bit since losing forward Omar Marmoush to Manchester City in January, and they need to turn their results around a bit if they want to play in the Champions League next season -- they've won only two of their past eight league matches. But in the Bundesliga and Europa League, they've been consistently entertaining, especially in the shots (attempted and allowed) department.
9. Monaco (9.2). A stalwart on the Watchability list, Monaco attempt nothing but high-quality shots and they press constantly. The ball spends a lot of time in one attacking third or the other. They're in a tight race for Champions League spots in Ligue 1 right now, too -- they're tied for third with eight games remaining -- and the competition would be less entertaining without them.
10. Atalanta (9.2). They fell out of the Watchability top 25 for the first time last year, but they've charged back. The patented Gian Piero Gasperini 3-4-1-2 formation brings attackers in from every angle, and they average a solid 1.0 point per game when trailing. They're probably too unreliable to win the Scudetto this season -- in their past two matches they crushed Juventus 4-0 and got manhandled by Inter 2-0 -- but this squad has played some sexy ball in 2024-25.
You're going to have a good time (Grade: 8.1-9.0)
11. Stuttgart (9.1). Stuttgart have spent much of the season playing entertaining ball and falling just short.
12. Marseille (9.0)
13. Tottenham Hotspur (9.0). Last year's No. 1 team on the Watchability list is both worse and less watchable this season.
Julien Laurens believes Ange Postecoglou has to win the Europa League to save his job.
14. Villarreal (9.0). Their attack is often dynamite, and their defense is often far too generous. Villarreal are on the border of a return to the Champions League, and they've played in some of LaLiga's most enjoyable games to date this season.
15. Manchester City (8.9). It probably goes without saying if you've gotten this far, but Manchester City's drastic problems in transition defense have in no way hurt their watchability score.
16. AFC Bournemouth (8.9). No team in the Big Five produces a higher average of combined shot attempts, for and against, than Bournemouth. Hell yeah.
17. Brighton (8.9)
18. Bayer Leverkusen (8.9). They don't have the same comeback magic this year ... but they're still one of only eight Big Five teams averaging at least 1.2 points per game from behind.
19. Inter Milan (8.8)
20. Brentford (8.7)
21. Lille (8.6). Lille games don't feature many shot attempts, but any shot -- for either team -- is high-quality, and 90% of possessions happen when the game is within one goal. That's a solid, watchable combination.
22. Milan (8.5)
23. Borussia Dortmund (8.5)
Shaka Hislop and Craig Burley analyze Alexander Isak's future at Newcastle.
24. Newcastle United (8.5)
25. Real Betis (8.3). Another team almost always playing in close games, they produce lots of solid passing and switches of play, too. (That's what happens when you employ Isco.)
The potential for enjoyment is pretty good (Grade: 6.1-8.0)
26. Wolfsburg (7.7). When Wolfsburg play a good team (which I'll define here as anyone averaging at least 1.5 points per game in league play), their games average 4.4 combined goals. They dropped two 3-2 decisions against Bayern Munich, suffered a 4-3 loss to Bayer Leverkusen, beat Mainz 4-3 and beat Borussia Monchengladbach 5-1.
27. Celta de Vigo (7.6)
28. Nice (7.5). They attempt a lot of shots, allow a lot of shots, suffer a decent number of high turnovers, try a lot of through-balls ... they're INEOS' most watchable club.
29. Lazio (7.4)
30. Manchester United (7.4). INEOS' second-most watchable club (and definitely the most disappointing).
Rob Dawson tells "The Football Reporters' podcast that Manchester United fans won't be happy with the direction of the club until there's real evidence of change.
31. Arsenal (7.4). The watchability formula struggled with Arsenal. They're good, they play with lots of defensive intensity, and they pull more points from comeback opportunities than most. They also don't attempt many shots, don't allow many shots and definitely don't allow any good shots.
32. Athletic Club (7.3)
33. Fiorentina (7.2)
34. Roma (7.2). Granted, when you're led by three pretty distinct managers (Daniele De Rossi, Ivan Juric and Claudio Ranieri) in the same year, this is going to be more of an average than a statement on how Roma play in the present tense. (By the way, they're great right now.
They bowed out of the Europa League, but they've won six straight Serie A matches. They were 12th in Serie A on Dec. 21, and now they're four points away from fourth place and a possible spot in the Champions League. Ranieri is pulling off a miracle at the moment.)
35. RB Leipzig (7.1)
36. Strasbourg (7.0)
37. Bologna (6.9). Like Roma, Bologna are charging. They've won four straight league matches, and they've lost only once in all competitions in 2025, jumping Juventus and Lazio into fourth in Serie A. Their attack is a bit of a mess, but they're super aggressive in defense, and their 1.1 points per game after trailing is 10th in the Big Five.
They might make it back to the Champions League!
38. Fulham (6.6)
39. Atlético Madrid (6.6). Diego Simeone has slowly modernized his attack, and Atleti have one of the better xG-per-shot averages in LaLiga. They're comeback kings, too (1.37 points per game from behind). But that offense is only ever going to be so watchable. (Exception: Barcelona matches.)
40. Juventus (6.3). Manager Thiago Motta did not field the sexiest attack in the world at Bologna last year, and he certainly hasn't uncovered one at Juve. But they pass pretty well, at least.
41. Lens (6.3)
Could be great fun, could be awful (Grade: 3.1-6.0)
42. Rayo Vallecano (6.0)
43. Werder Bremen (5.9)
44. Aston Villa (5.2)
45. Borussia Monchengladbach (5.1)
46. Hoffenheim (5.1)
47. Bochum (5.0). The most watchable bad team (under 1.0 points per game) in major European football. Congrats!
48. Mainz 05 (4.9)
49. Parma (4.9)
50. Napoli (4.8). The least watchable really good team (over 2.0 points per game) in major European football. Congrats, I guess!
51. Como (4.8)
52. Osasuna (4.8)
53. Las Palmas (4.8)
54. Heidenheim (3.7)
55. Brest (3.5)
56. Nottingham Forest (3.3). There is something quite pleasing about a proud old club finding incredible success with a proud, old style of ball (compact defense, punishing counterattacks), and it's helped them to third in the Premier League with 16 wins from 29 games. That doesn't mean they score well on this scale.
57. Auxerre (3.2)
58. Valencia (3.1)
At least it's soccer on TV, right? (Grade: 1.1-3.0)
59. Crystal Palace (3.0)
60. Getafe (2.7). Their attack is ridiculously direct (good), and 94% of their possessions have come with their matches within one goal (good). Also: Their matches feature almost no shots (bad), and they have the second xG-per-shot average in the Big Five (bad).
Getafe: a land of contrasts.
61. Cagliari (2.6)
62. Deportivo Alavés (2.6)
63. Nantes (2.6)
64. Rennes (2.5)
65. Montpellier (2.5)
66. Holstein Kiel (2.4)
67. Wolves (2.4)
68. Saint-Etienne (2.4)
69. Le Havre (2.3)
70. Sevilla (2.1)
71. West Ham United (2.0). West Ham matches have averaged 29.0 combined shots, fourth most in the Big Five. Those shots almost never go in, however, and when the team falls behind, it's game over for them.
72. Mallorca (1.9)
73. Udinese (1.8)
74. Real Sociedad (1.8)
75. Freiburg (1.6). Only one of the bottom 40 teams on this list still has a chance at a Champions League bid: Freiburg, who average just 1.4 goals per game and whose goalkeeper, Noah Atubolu, just set a club record for most minutes without allowing a goal.
Incredible club, great story, ugly ball.
76. Reims (1.4)
77. Southampton (1.4)
78. Hellas Verona (1.3)
79. Girona (1.3). Girona made the Champions League, then lost maybe their four best players (Artem Dovbyk, Aleix Garcia and loanees Savinho and Yan Couto). This season has gone about as well as one would have expected.
80. Angers (1.3)
81. Toulouse (1.2)
82. Lecce (1.2)
83. Genoa (1.1)
84. Real Valladolid (1.1)
Don't watch unless you have a rooting interest (Grade: 0.0-1.0)
85. Augsburg (1.0). In their past 10 league matches, Augsburg are unbeaten with six wins and four draws. In this span, they've scored 12 goals and allowed two.
Admirable. And gross.
86. Venezia (1.0)
87. Torino (0.9)
88. Ipswich Town (0.9)
89. Leganes (0.9)
90. Union Berlin (0.9)
91. Leicester City (0.9)
92. Espanyol (0.8)
93. Monza (0.7)
94. Everton (0.7). Everton won three straight matches after (re-)hiring David Moyes in January, scoring seven goals in the process. In 31 other league matches, they've scored 25 goals. At least they're not in a relegation fight.
95. Empoli (0.6)
96. St. Pauli (0.5). Watchability can come later: for now, just survive. It's been the sole focus of St. Pauli's first Bundesliga campaign in 14 years. The beloved pirates didn't score at home until Nov. 29, and their 20 goals scored are the lowest in the league. But they're six points above the automatic relegation line at the moment!
It doesn't matter how watchable you are as long as you stay up.