MADRID (AP) – The Spanish league is finally playing regular season games in the US.
La Liga confirmed on Wednesday that Villarreal and Barcelona will face each other at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on December 20th.
“This match is a historic step towards taking La Liga and Spanish football to a whole new level,” Spanish league president Javier Tevas said in a league statement.
He and the league have been pushing for regular season overseas games for some time, but the first attempt came in the 2018 match between Barcelona and Girona, but the idea was rejected after criticism from some players, fans and clubs. Subsequent attempts to play were also unsuccessful, but this time we moved forward after UEFA agreed to the game on Monday. Opposition from the fan group Crossing the continent.
The European governing body did not oppose plans by both the Spanish and Italian leagues, hoping to face AC Milan in Australia next year.
UEFA blamed the lack of clear rules World Soccer Body FIFA To block the proposed game, many fans see team relationships as a threat to reduce their home community.
The Spanish football federation, which under previous administrations, strongly opposed overseas league matches, was also I gave him Go-Ard For planning this year’s Laliga.
Staging matches abroad was part of the league’s goal of promoting football and its brands in other countries. To achieve its goal, several years ago, he signed a long-term partnership with related sports from the Sports and Entertainment Group, which is part of Stephen Ross’ portfolio of companies such as Hard Rock Stadium, Miami Dolphins, Formula One’s Miami Grand Prix and Miami Open Tennis Tournament.
Plans for the LA La Liga game in Miami were later updated FIFA withdraws from legal action Brought by Relevent in the Manhattan court. A few weeks later, FIFA said it would check the rules. We have created a working group that includes UEFA lawyers.
After that, Relevent became a Key UEFA Commercial Partners And the influential European Club Association is entrusted this year with six years of commercial rights sold for the Champions League and other continental tournaments by 2033.
Villarreal, who will play in the Champions League this season, will nominally become the home team for the match in Miami, but Barcelona fans should be the majority of Hard Rock Stadium. Former Barcelona star Lionel Messi is a major attraction of Intermiami, a major league soccer player.
Villarreal said the ticket holder for the season You can travel for free You will receive free tickets for the match. Those who don’t want to or can’t, said they’ll get a 20% discount on their season tickets.
In the US professional sports leagues, games abroad have become a regular part of the NFL as they play in several European cities, but they still have a European football culture where tribal rivalries and visiting teams thrive with fans in the stadium.
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