”This would affect the integrity of sports”, says the club in a statement.
La Liga has for several years tried to find new ways to spread the league's popularity. One of them is to play league matches abroad. Already in 2018, Barcelona was to meet Girona in the USA, but the plan was scrapped after criticism from both clubs, players and fans.
Now La Liga wants to have a league match in the USA again, this time between Barcelona and Villarreal – potentially on December 20 in Miami.
”Unacceptable”
Barcelona's arch-rivals Real Madrid are however critical of the proposal, which they believe goes against the traditional sporting distribution that all teams meet once at home and once away.
”This would be an unacceptable precedent that opens the door for exceptions based on something other than sporting merits”, the club writes on its website.
The proposal for a league match in the USA is also criticized by supporter organizations.
Brand
The Spanish Football Federation has however given the green light to the match, but Uefa and Fifa need to have their say before it becomes a reality.
Villarreal's president Fernando Roig said at a press conference on Tuesday that the match would:
Really help us to broaden our brand in a key market like the USA.
Barcelona has so far been silent about the plans for a league match in the USA.
La Liga has, just like Uefa, strong economic ties to the USA. Not least to financier Stephen Ross's company Relevent Sports, which has a collaboration with both the European Football Association, La Liga, Bundesliga and Premier League.
Even the Italian Serie A is exploring the possibility of playing a league match abroad, probably Milan–Como which in that case would be played in Perth in Australia in February.
