Six weeks into the European season, the gap at the top of most tables already looks like a habit rather than an accident. Five of the eight leagues tracked here have a leader who still hasn't lost, and in two cases the goal difference numbers are doing most of the talking.
Still Unbeaten
Manchester City sit on top of the Premier League with 18 points from six games, all wins, for a goal difference of plus 11. FC Barcelona have been even more ruthless in La Liga: eight games, eight wins, 24 points and a goal difference of plus 27. Inter lead Serie A on 16 points from six games (5W 1D), while AS Monaco top Ligue 1 on 14 points from six, with two draws mixed into four wins. SC Freiburg, meanwhile, are the Bundesliga's early pacesetter on 13 points from five games, with four wins and a single draw.
The Goal Difference Gulf
Barcelona's plus 27 across just eight matches is the standout figure anywhere in this round-up, comfortably outstripping City's plus 11 and Inter and Freiburg's shared plus 10. Further down the list, Flamengo's plus 33 in the Brasileirão and Nashville SC's plus 37 in MLS are built over a much longer campaign, 30 games and 28 games respectively, but the scale of the numbers is still notable given how far through those seasons both clubs already are.
The Longer Hauls
Flamengo lead the Brasileirão Serie A on 64 points from 30 games (19W 7D 4L), a points total built on durability as much as firepower. Nashville SC have been just as consistent in MLS, topping the table on 63 points from 28 games (19W 6D 3L). In England's second tier, Swansea City lead the Championship on 20 points from nine games, with six wins, two draws and one defeat, the only leader in this group who has already dropped points in defeat rather than just a draw.
Taken together, it is a season so far defined by control at the summit. Whether any of these gaps survive the run of fixtures still to come is the obvious next question, but for now the leaders are leaders by a distance.