This paper presents an advance of the investigation in progress on the variation of the level of spatial concentration of economic activity and of the per capita income in the regions of the European Union (EU) and its impact on regional disparities. The first part seeks to place the academic debate on the state of affairs; the second part seeks to provide an approximation to the empirical analysis by studying the uneven impact of the economic crisis on the territory of the EU. The third part aims to provide the main conclusions of the study and some considerations of economic policy among which we highlight the proposal of a Regional Potential Index.
