LaLiga Players Protest Miami Match: Rejection of the Decision

Protests in LaLiga over Miami match

LaLiga players started protests against the league’s decision to hold a regular season game in Miami. However, the first protest on Friday was not shown live on television as expected. The worldwide television broadcast of the match between Real Oviedo and Espanyol cut to the outside view of the stadium during the first 25 seconds of the game. At that moment, the players stopped for the first 15 seconds in protest against the plans to take a match to the United States. The match took place a few hours after the Spanish footballers’ union announced that protests would take place immediately after the kick-off in the matches of the ninth matchday, from Friday to Monday.

• The Spanish players’ union opposes the Barça match in the United States.
• Why do FIFA and UEFA allow leagues to play abroad?
• LaLiga confirms the historic Barça match in the United States.

The players’ union stated in a statement that “the players will protest symbolically to denounce the lack of transparency, dialogue and consistency of LaLiga regarding the possibility of playing a match in the United States.” LaLiga made official last week its plans to hold the Barcelona-Villarreal match in Miami on December 20. The union stated that the captains of the 20 first division teams agreed with the protest. But the union added that it had not asked the players of Barcelona and Villarreal to participate in the protest, although, according to the union, “they share the basic premise of the protest”.

Barcelona hosts Girona and Villarreal hosts Real Betis on Saturday. On Friday, Barcelona coach Hansi Flick and his players were not happy to have to travel 7,200 kilometers (4,500 miles) to play a regular season game.

My players are not happy, I am not happy, but LaLiga decided that we will play this match.

Hansi Flick

The president of Barcelona, Joan Laporta, has defended the measure, stating that it represents an opportunity to further boost the American sports market. But for Flick and his players, it represents an additional trip before a short winter break. Barcelona will also travel to Saudi Arabia for the Spanish Super Cup, which begins on January 7. Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong also criticized the celebration of the match in the United States, stating that the players were already overloaded with travel and a very tight match schedule. Just like Barcelona, Villarreal was also playing in the Champions League. The president of LaLiga, Javier Tebas, has defended the match abroad as key to boosting “medium and long-term revenue” and increasing the value of the television rights of his competition, which lag behind those of the English Premier League.

Tebas said that the league plans to turn an international match into an annual event.

The match will be played at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, home of the NFL’s Miami Dolphins. The league has chartered planes to take to Florida what it estimates will be between 2,000 and 3,000 Villarreal fans, who are the home team.