"Big Four" dominance
A major criticism of the Premier League has been the emergence of the so-called "Big Four" clubs . Since Blackburn Rovers lifted the trophy in 1994–95, only three clubs have won the Premier League title – Manchester United (ten of the club's twelve titles), Arsenal and Chelsea (three times each). In addition, Manchester United have not finished outside the top three since the formation of the Premier League. From the 1996–97 season onwards, the "Top Four" (Arsenal, Chelsea, Liverpool and Manchester United) have dominated the top four spots, and thus places in the UEFA Champions League (qualification was one club for the first four seasons, increased to two clubs in 1997, three in 1999 and four since 2002). The benefits of qualification, especially increased revenue, are believed to have widened the gap between the "Top Four" clubs and the rest of the Premier League.In May 2008, the then Newcastle United manager Kevin Keegan said the "Big Four"'s dominance threatened the division, saying, "This league is in danger of becoming one of the most boring but great leagues in the world." Following Keegan's comments, Premier League chief executive Richard Scudamore defended the league, saying, "There are a lot of different tussles that go on in the Premier League depending on whether you're at the top, in the middle or at the bottom that make it interesting." The dominance of Chelsea and Manchester United has led some to believe that the "Big Four" has contracted to a "Big Two"; no club other than these two has won the Premier League since 2004 and, as of May 2011[update], 20 of the last 27 major domestic trophies have gone to either Stamford Bridge or Old Trafford. The years following 2009 marked a shift in the structure of the "Big Four" with two new clubs, Tottenham Hotspur and Manchester City, who managed to finish in the top four and secure Champions League football. In the 2009-10 Premier League season Tottenham Hotspur finished fourth, with Manchester City finishing third in the 2010-11 season. As of the end of the 2010–11 season, Manchester United have finished in the top four the most often, having finished in the top four in all nineteen Premier League seasons. Arsenal are second with sixteen top four finishes, followed by Liverpool with twelve and Chelsea with eleven.
| Season | Arsenal | Chelsea | Liverpool | Manchester United |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 992–93 | 10 | 6 | 1 | |
| 1993–94 | 4 | 14 | 8 | 1 |
| 1994–95 | 12 | 11 | 4 | 2 |
| 1995–96 | 5 | 11 | 3 | 1 |
| 1996–97 | 3 | 6 | 4 | 1 |
| 1997–98 | 1 | 4 | 3 | 2 |
| 1998–99 | 2 | 3 | 7 | 1 |
| 1999–2000 | 2 | 5 | 4 | 1 |
| 2000–01 | 2 | 6 | 3 | 1 |
| 2001–02 | 1 | 6 | 2 | 3 |
| 2002–03 | 2 | 4 | 5 | 1 |
| 2003–04 | 1 | 2 | 4 | 3 |
| 2004–05 | 2 | 1 | 5 | 3 |
| 2005–06 | 4 | 1 | 3 | 2 |
| 2006–07 | 4 | 2 | 3 | 1 |
| 2007–08 | 3 | 2 | 4 | 1 |
| 2008–09 | 4 | 3 | 2 | 1 |
| 2009–10 | 3 | 1 | 7 | 2 |
| 2010–11 | 4 | 2 | 6 | 1 |
| Top four finishes | 16 | 11 | 12 | 19 |
Widening gap with lower leagues
See also: Premier League–Football League gulf
One of the main criticisms levelled at the Premier League is the increasing gulf between the Premier League and the Football League. Since its split with the Football League, many established clubs in the Premier League have managed to distance themselves from their counterparts in lower leagues. Owing in large part to the disparity in revenue from television rights between the leagues, many newly promoted teams have found it difficult to avoid relegation in their first season in the Premier League. In every season except 2001–02 (Blackburn Rovers, Bolton Wanderers and Fulham) at least one Premier League newcomer has been relegated back to the Football League. In 1997–98 all three promoted clubs were relegated at the end of the season.The Premier League distributes a small portion of its television revenue to clubs that are relegated from the league in the form of "parachute payments". Starting with the 2006–07 season, these payments are in the amount of £6.5 million over the club's first two seasons in lower leagues, although this rose to £11.2 million per year for clubs relegated in 2007–2008. Designed to help teams adjust to the loss of television revenues (the average Premier League team receives £45 million while the average Football League Championship club receives £1 million), critics maintain that the payments actually widen the gap between teams that have reached the Premier League and those that have not,leading to the common occurrence of teams "bouncing back" soon after their relegation. For some clubs, including Leeds United, Charlton Athletic, Nottingham Forest, Oldham Athletic, Sheffield Wednesday, Bradford City, Leicester City, Southampton and Wimbledon who have failed to win immediate promotion back to the Premier League, financial problems, including in some cases administration or even liquidation have followed. Further relegations down the footballing ladder have ensued
