Is England like the ACC?

I caught the tail end of the Champions League coverage on ESPN2 today. Of the 8 teams remaining to get soccer’s top club prize, four of them hail from England. So I ask, is England to the European soccer world what the ACC is to college basketball?
That is to say, is the entire Premiership hated by those that don’t have a team involved, as the ACC is? The Big East doesn’t work, because as much as you may hate UCONN, you can’t possibly have a deep seated feeling about Depaul. Besides, the conference is always competetive and fun to watch, thanks in large part to the fact that there are 40 teams in the conference.
No, the ACC has a few teams at the cream of the crop, and if you don’t have a dog in that race, you pretty much don’t like the race as a general rule. It’s one thing to hate North Carolina or Duke or Wake Forest who are always at the top of the conference, but also rans like Clemson and Boston College are disdained as well. Is it the same way in England? Arsenal and Man U and Chelsea despised for their success, but are Tottenham, Everton and West Brom hated for the association?
Making matters more interesting, it seems that English teams are the only ones getting any airplay on ESPN. Does anyone know?

(Sorry, I needed to step away from angry Twins related screeds. It’s only game 2!)