The League match between Villarreal and FC Barcelonawhose dispute was scheduled for December 20 in Miamihas been cancelled, announced this Tuesday by the employers’ association spanish soccer.
“LaLiga informs that, after conversations with the promoter of the Official LaLiga Match in Miami, it has communicated its decision to cancel the organization of the event due to the uncertainty generated in Spain in recent weeks,” the organization said in a statement.
He also “deeply regretted that this project, which represented a historic and unparalleled opportunity for the internationalization of Spanish football, cannot go ahead.”
“The celebration of an official match outside our borders would have been a decisive step in the global expansion of our competition, reinforcing the international presence of the clubs, the positioning of the players and the brand of Spanish football in a strategic market such as the United States,” he alleged.
LaLiga recalled that this initiative fell within the regulations and “did not affect the integrity of the competition.”
Tickets for the game at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium were going to be available this Tuesday, but organizers said pre-sales were “delayed” before the plan was scrapped.
The clash will thus be played at Villarreal’s Estadio de la Cerámica.
UEFA, European soccer’s governing body, said it was opposed to the idea of matches being played abroad but would allow it on an exceptional basis, along with a Serie A match in Australia in February between AC Milan and Como.
The Association of Spanish Footballers (AFE) organized protests last weekend. Players stood still for 15 seconds at the beginning of each match.
“A stain” on the competition
In addition, Real Madrid showed its opposition, while “merengue” goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois stated this Tuesday that he would adulterate the competition.
“Playing at home is not the same as playing away. Playing away from home in LaLiga is very complicated, as happened to us against Real (Sociedad), Getafe. Villarreal away is difficult,” the goalkeeper explained at a press conference.
In the same room, coach Xabi Alonso insisted on the white entity’s rejection of the match dispute. “The club is legitimately defending its interests and we’ll see what happens,” he remarked.
Even the captain of the white team, Dani Carvajal, declared that if the match was held abroad it would be “a stain” on the competition.
LaLiga justified this initiative as a way to guarantee the sustainability and growth of Spanish football “in a context of growing global competitiveness, where leagues such as the Premier League or competitions such as the UEFA Champions League continue to increase their reach and capacity to generate resources.”
And he added that discarding this type of promotions “makes it difficult to generate new income, limits the ability of clubs to invest and compete, and reduces the international projection of the entire national football ecosystem.”
