LaLiga president Javier Tebas has revived his controversial ambition to host a league match abroad, touting Saudi Arabia as a potential host, despite previous attempts facing fierce opposition at home in Spain.
“(Bringing a La Liga match abroad) is still our goal. We are still getting closer to our goal and we hope to reach it soon,” Tebas emphasized in his speech at the World Football Summit in Riyadh.
He pointed to the ongoing discussion within the football body and added: “There is currently a discussion in FIFA about creating a law to hold domestic matches abroad. And we will see how this process will go, but we will continue to try.”
A previous bid to host a game between Barcelona and Villarreal at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium in December collapsed following widespread domestic criticism, player protests and legal challenges.
Critics argued that playing league matches outside of Spain would undermine the integrity of the traditional home-and-away format.
Real Madrid, a prominent opponent, filed complaints with Spain’s sports ministry, accusing La Liga and the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) of bypassing the clubs in the decision-making process.
Players from all teams staged silent protests by standing still at the start of the game, although these actions were not included in the official broadcast.
Defending the initiative, Tebas said: “One match out of 380 matches is nothing and it really helps grow our audio-visual product.”
He reiterated his global vision: “And not just in the United States, we’d love to bring it to Saudi Arabia. That’s still our goal and every time we get closer to achieving it.”
While UEFA had reluctantly approved Miami’s earlier plan, FIFA, which has final authority, never issued final approval and its position on allowing domestic league matches outside its national territory is undecided.
Tabas expressed his confidence despite the past failures and in the end said: next time we believe that we will achieve it.
