Real Madrid 'firmly rejects' La Liga match being played in Miami

MADRID (AP) — Real Madrid said it "firmly rejects" having a regular-season Spanish league game played in the United States and warned of “a turning point in the world of football.”

Villarreal, in contrast, is promising free travel and tickets for season-ticket holders if its match against Barcelona in Miami is approved in what would be a first for the league. The 17th-round match in La Liga would be played at the Hard Rock Stadium.

Madrid said Tuesday it has taken action to keep the Dec. 20 match from happening in the U.S., claiming it would hurt the “integrity of the competition” and the “legitimacy of the results.”

“The measure, which was taken without prior information or consultation of the clubs participating in the competition, infringes the essential principle of territorial reciprocity, which applies in two-legged league competitions (one match at home and the other at the home of the opposing team), upsetting the competitive balance and giving an undue sporting advantage to the applicant clubs,” Madrid said.

The club said the match would set “an unacceptable precedent that opens the door to exceptions based on non-sporting interests, clearly affecting sporting integrity and risking the adulteration of the competition.”

“If this proposal were to be carried out, its consequences would be so serious that it would be a turning point in the world of football,” Madrid said.

The Europe-wide fan group Football Supporters Europe (FSE) said it was “liaising” with members, soccer stakeholders, affected groups, and partner organizations to “collectively resist the latest threat to the very nature of football.”

“We are following the broader impact on football with the utmost concern,” the group said. “Moving games from their domestic territories strikes at the heart of the relationship between fans and their teams, breaking vital links between clubs and their communities.”

The group also criticized a similar move by the Italian league to play a match abroad.

The Italian soccer federation said in July that a plan was in motion to play the Serie A match between AC Milan and Como in the Australian city of Perth in February.

Madrid asks FIFA and UEFA to withhold permission

Madrid said it has asked FIFA, UEFA and Spain's top sports body to not authorize the game in the U.S. The Spanish soccer federation on Monday approved a request for the match to be played in Miami. UEFA and FIFA now have to approve the request before it can be made official.

“Any modification of this nature must, in any case, have the express and unanimous agreement of all the clubs participating in the competition, as well as strictly respecting the national and international rules governing the organization of official competitions,” Madrid said.

Madrid and Spanish league president Javier Tebas have often been at odds on various issues.

The club said UEFA should deny the request to play the game abroad based on the “criterion established in 2018 that prevents official matches in domestic competitions from being played outside national territory, except in duly justified exceptional circumstances, which are not present here.”

Madrid said it asked the country's high sports council “not to grant the necessary administrative authorization without such unanimous consent.”

“Real Madrid reaffirms its commitment to respect the national and international rules that guarantee the fairness and proper functioning of official competitions, and will defend its compliance with them before all competent bodies,” the club said.

Villarreal hoping to expand its brand in US

Villarreal earlier Tuesday said its season ticket-holders can travel for free and receive free tickets for the match. It said those who don't want to go, or can't go, will get a 20% discount on their season tickets.

“We would be the first (Spanish) team to play a league match abroad,” Villarreal president Fernando Roig told a news conference. "It would greatly help us expand our brand in a key market like the United States.”

Staging a match abroad has long been part of the league’s goal to promote soccer and its brand in other countries.

It first tried to stage a match in the U.S. in 2018, with a game between Barcelona and Girona, but the idea was dismissed after criticism from players, fans and clubs. Subsequent attempts to play there also failed.

The league had offered compensation packages for Girona fans in 2018.

It wasn't clear whether it would be Villarreal or the league paying for the travel and tickets for the club's fans this time.

The attempts to play in the U.S. are part of the league's long-term partnership with sports and entertainment group Relevent Sports, which is part of Stephen Ross’ portfolio of companies including Hard Rock Stadium, the Miami Dolphins, the Formula One’s Miami Grand Prix and the Miami Open tennis tournament.

Earlier this year, it was announced that New York-based Relevent Sports has exclusive negotiating rights over the global commercial rights to the UEFA men’s club competitions for the period 2027-2033.

FIFA moved last year toward ending decades of soccer tradition by ordering a review of its policy that blocks domestic league games being played in other countries.

Some fan groups in Spain and the country's players association on Monday expressed their disapproval of the plan to move the match thousands of kilometers away.

It has become routine, though, for U.S. pro sports leagues to stage games in Europe, Asia and South America that help build their brands and fan bases.

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