In practice, football already has an unofficial hierarchy.
That same pattern exists in Europe. The Champions League is the clearest elite honour. The Europa League has enough history and competitive depth to stand on its own as a major trophy. The problem begins when a competition is newer, narrower or clearly below another in the same pyramid.
The Conference League is the best modern example. Chelsea and Roma have both won it, and no one can dismiss it as meaningless: it is a UEFA competition and it requires a full campaign. But it is still UEFA’s third-tier tournament, and that matters.
Supporters usually judge trophies on three things:
On those measures, the Conference League is often seen as a step below the top two European cups. It counts, but not always equally.
The Club World Cup raises a different issue. It can deliver global bragging rights, yet many fans still place it below the prizes that got a club there in the first place. That is why Barcelona in 2009 and Bayern Munich in 2020 are remembered less for the trophy in isolation and more for completing a sextuple.
That is the heart of the argument: football values context as much as silverware. As the Conference League matures and the Club World Cup keeps evolving, the next trophy-count debate is never far away.