Frenkie de Jong opposes the Barcelona-Villarreal match in Miami
Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong has expressed his disagreement with the decision to play the LaLiga match against Villarreal in Miami, United States, in December.
LaLiga confirmed that the match, originally scheduled at Villarreal’s Estadio de la Cerámica, will be moved to Hard Rock Stadium. This decision was made after UEFA approved the request.
De Jong argues that this measure implies more travel in an already tight schedule, and also understands the complaints of rival teams, who believe this distorts the competition.
I don’t like it
Frenkie de Jong
The Dutch player, who is concentrated with his national team, added that, although he understands the economic benefits for the clubs and the expansion of the brand, he would not be in favor of this initiative.De Jong pointed out that the decision is not favorable for the players, as it involves a lot of travel, and that it is also unfair in terms of competition, as for them it is an away game on a neutral field.
Real Madrid has criticized the decision to take a match to the United States, alleging that it will give an “undue sporting advantage” to the teams involved and sets an “unacceptable precedent”.
LaLiga has been trying to move a match to the United States since 2017. The plans accelerated in August, when they finally received approval from the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF).
UEFA approved two requests to play matches abroad, including Barcelona and Villarreal’s match in Miami and another between Milan and Como in Perth, Australia, in February.
UEFA, although opposed to the idea of playing national league matches outside their countries of origin, cited FIFA’s framework and regulations in confirming that it had accepted the proposals “exceptionally.” FIFA has formed a working group to review those regulations.
The president of LaLiga, Javier Tebas, indicates that the plan is to take a league match abroad every season, not just to the United States.
The match between Barcelona and Villarreal will be the first match of the five major European leagues to be played abroad, following a model implemented by American leagues such as the NFL and NBA.
