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If there is one thing football fans love, it is a closely-contested league that goes right down to the wire. Final day drama, helicopters on standby to transport the league trophy to the respective stadium, or even duplicate trophies used just for the sake of the presentation...
Ah, that's what we live for. Unfortunately, that is not always the case. There have been seasons where the league title was sewn up long before the season came to an end - sometimes even as early as the month of March!
So which was the most dominant team ever in each of Europe's top 5 leagues?
#5 La Liga: 15 points - Barcelona in 2012/13
1) Barcelona: 100 points
2) Real Madrid: 85 points
The 2012/13 La Liga season was dominated by Barcelona throughout. They took the lead on the very first day of the season and never relinquished top spot in the table.
Over 38 games, they won 32 times and drew 4 games - losing just twice. They were undefeated at home and lost away to Real Madrid in El Clasico and to Real Sociedad at Anoeta - one of the few grounds where they have struggled for years.
32 wins and 4 draws also saw them accumulate 100 points - equaling the record set by Real Madrid the season before. But they only managed to score 115 goals, falling short of Real's record of 121 goals. However, the Blaugrana had scored in all 38 matches - a new record (later equalled by Real).
Barcelona were never really challenged. Real's poor start to the season saw them languish in 12th place after four games before they clawed their way back. Atletico Madrid, who were second for 24 weeks, also succumbed towards the end, allowing their derby rivals to eventually finish second.
It was also Tito Vilanova's first and last full season as a manager as cancer took its toll, sidelining him for three months of the season. Vilanova lost his battle with cancer less than a year later.
The league win is most memorable for the way Carles Puyol paid tribute to not only Vilanova's fight against cancer but also Eric Abidal's struggles (he had undergone a liver transplant) by allowing them to lift the trophy at the end of the season.
#4 Premier League: 18 points - Manchester United in 1999/2000
1) Manchester United: 91 points
2) Arsenal: 73 points
Following their treble-winning high in 1999, Manchester United strolled to the Premier League title the next season, winning with an astonishing 18-point margin as the rest of the teams simply buckled.
Unlike Barcelona of 2012/13, the Red Devils were never on top of the table for the entire season. In fact, they lost their lead twice over the course of the season. A 5-0 loss to Chelsea was their wake-up call and a 14-match unbeaten run that began in February eventually culminated in the league title win.
That run of games included an 11-match winning run. Runners-up Arsenal had an inconsistent run between December and March, virtually handing the title to United. Third-placed Leeds United were never really in the hunt either towards the end of the season.
Sir Alex Ferguson's side lost only three games that entire season, scoring 97 goals. Dwight Yorke (20 goals) and Andy Cole (19 goals) were their top goalscorers, followed by Ole Gunnar Solskjær (12 goals).
#3 Serie A: 22 points - Inter Milan in 2006/07
1) Inter Milan: 97 points
2) AS Roma: 75 points
Italian football had reached both its nadir and zenith in the span of few months in 2006. First, Calciopoli had brought Italian club football to its knees as the match-fixing scandal saw champions Juventus stripped of the title and relegated (as were Fiorentina and Lazio) while AC Milan were docked 30 points.
Eager to restore Italian pride, the national team then won the 2006 World Cup in Germany. Amidst this backdrop, the 2006/07 Serie A season got underway.
Roberto Mancini's side won the title with five games to spare after losing just once the entire season (to title rivals Roma). However, a 17-match winning streak had seen them pull away from AS Roma with Zlatan Ibrahimovic leading the way with 15 goals.
Without three major rivals in the league, Inter Milan were never challenged that season. They took the lead three times in the earlier stages of the season and never slipped back into second place after taking the lead in November.
It was also a season remembered for all the wrong reasons. It was the first time Juventus were not involved in the championship while the league encountered a number of stoppages as football-related violence saw a police officer and an amateur club manager getting killed.
#2 Bundesliga: 25 points - Bayern Munich in 2012/13
1) Bayern Munich: 91 points
2) Borussia Dortmund: 66 points
Jupp Heynckes' all-conquering Bayern Munich side were a treat to watch in the 2012/13 season. The treble seemed like just a formality following their Bundesliga dominance and the way they dispatched Barcelona with a 7-0 aggregate scoreline in the Champions League semi-finals.
They took the lead on Matchday 1 and had sealed the title by Matchday 28. In the process, they broke their own record which was previously Matchday 30. They lost only once the entire season - a 2-1 loss to Bayer Leverkusen.
They had also managed to the league double over 13 of the 17 clubs. The only team they failed to beat were Borussia Dortmund with both the home and away games ending in 1-1 draws. However, they made up for it with a 2-1 win over Dortmund in the Champions League final.
Bayern's top goalscorers that season were Mario Mandzukic (15 goals) and Thomas Muller (13 goals). Mario Gomez (11 goals) and Franck Ribery (10 goals) had also played their part while Manuel Neuer had 18 clean sheets to his name.
#1 Ligue 1: 31 points - Paris Saint-Germain in 2015/16
1) PSG: 96 points
2) Lyon: 65 points
Despite winning 1-0 on Matchday 1, Paris Saint-Germain were placed eighth in the table due to an inferior Goal Difference. By the end of Matchday 2, they were in first place. They never looked back and stormed to the Ligue 1 title in record time.
With just two losses in the entire season (to Lyon and AS Monaco), PSG scored 102 goals on their way to 96 points in Ligue 1. In fact, they were out of reach by mid-March following a mind-boggling 9-0 win at Troyes.
Of course, everyone was aware of how the nouveau riche club had bought quality players from across Europe to form a squad capable of winning everything. They almost did, winning a domestic quadruple but failing to get past the quarter-final stage of the Champions League.
PSG's top goalscorer was Zlatan Ibrahimovic (38 goals including two hat-tricks) while Edinson Cavani (19 goals including one hat-trick) had also contributed to the cause. Angel Di Maria had 18 assists to his name while Ibrahimovic also had 13.
The 31-point margin remains the biggest title-winning margin ever recorded in a top division in Europe.
Other notable league winners in Europe
- Scottish Premier League: 30 points - Celtic in 2016/17
- Croatian First Football League: 28 points - Dinamo Zagreb in 2007/08
- Portuguese Primeira Liga: 21 points - Porto in 2010/11
- Swiss Super League: 20 points - FC Basel in 2011/12
- Dutch Eredivisie: 17 points: PSV Eindhoven in 2000/01 & 2014/15
- Russian Premier League: 13 points: Zenit St Petersburg in 2011/12
Source for data: UEFA
