Is The Bar for MLS' Global Standing Getting Lower?

Much is discussed here in terms of MLS' progress on the global stage, couched in the available MLS metrics of attendance and salaries and transfer fees and the like. And direct competitive comparisons are available with Liga MX.

It's also plain to see in both financial and competitive terms that the elite of the elite at the top of the Premier League and the business end of the Champions League remain in a different stratosphere.

But as the European game's financial inequality grows...

Is The Bar for MLS' Global Standing Getting Lower?