NEW YORK (AP) — La Liga plans to make international soccer matches an annual event. It has been announced that Barcelona and Villarreal will face each other on December 20th in a Miami suburb.said Spanish league president Javier Tebas in an interview with The Associated Press.
La Liga, the first major European league to hold games overseas, follows the model of the NFL, which has been held in London since 2007 until this season. There are also matches in Berlin, Dublin, Madrid and Sao Paulo..
“The idea is to follow a similar model, but with one difference: we will only play one game abroad,” Tebas said of the upcoming schedule. “So I really believe that what they’re doing is a really positive thing for the sport. They’re making sure that people all over the world know about the sport and get involved.”
The soccer game will be held at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, home of the NFL’s Miami Dolphins. La Liga plans to announce international matches with longer lead times in the future. The schedule will be announced around the beginning of July every year.
He said, “This is a strategy that will lead to increased profits over the medium to long term because it will increase the value of our partners and sponsors.It will also increase the value of audiovisual rights with broadcasters.” “We hope to increase interest and participation from audiences in other countries as we look to bring this game to different countries around the world, one game each year.”
Italy’s Serie A is February 8th Milan vs Como match San Siro to Perth, AustraliaBecause Italy’s stadiums will no longer be available after the opening ceremony of the 2026 Winter Olympics is held two days ago.
Tebas said the experience of playing in an NFL stadium with many dining options and gathering areas could help Spain improve. Real Madrid renovated the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, while Osasuna renovated El Sadar. Construction is underway at Barcelona’s Camp Nou, Betis’ Estadio Benito Villamarín and Getafe’s Estadio Coliseum, while Valencia have long postponed plans for the Nou Mestalla.
“The aim is to increase the game day experience to more than two hours,” Tebas said. “Each club is already working towards that goal.”
CONCACAF, soccer’s governing body for North, Central America and the Caribbean, said on Thursday it must approve the match and would “undertake a thorough review of the application, including consultation with key regional and global stakeholders.”
Tebas said CONCACAF cannot block the match because of last year. Settlement proposal to withdraw FIFA from lawsuit by promoter Releventlike Hard Rock Stadium and the Dolphins, is owned by Stephen Ross.
“They can’t really go against that court resolution because there’s already a positive resolution in court that Relevent achieved against FIFA, and it’s also against CONCACAF in the United States,” he said.
Tebas said Barcelona and Villarreal will play one of their Copa del Rey round of 32 matches on Dec. 16, and that he will board a plane immediately after the match and arrive in Florida early Wednesday morning ahead of Saturday’s match.
La Liga chartered a plane to bring 2,000 to 3,000 fans from home team Villarreal to Florida, Tebas said. According to Relevent, pre-sales for tickets will begin on October 21st, with general sales to take place the following day.
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