User blog comment:FairyRaven/Fairy Tail Chapter 300: Where the Dragon's Soul Rests, Review and Commentary/@comment-904888-20120921111708/@comment-4999650-20120921112148

I dont think the guild leaders are the ones that necessarily induct members in, or maybe Sabertooth just works differently. Remember how Mirajane gave Lucy her stamp? Another member of Sabertooth could have branded the Exceeds. Plus a probable reason of Sabertooth being #1 is due to quantity of members, and not exactly quality, since only 5 members are renown but the rest are just... recruiting and recruting @~@