LaLiga cancels Miami match between Villarreal and Barcelona "due to the uncertainty arisen in Spain"
The promoter of the international match backed off seeing the widespread rejection for this football match played abroad.
There won't be a LaLiga match between Villarreal and Barcelona in Miami after all. LaLiga had announced that a regular league match, with Villarreal as "home" team, would take place at the Hard Rock Stadium in Miami on December 20, as a way to promote the sport and the teams abroad.
However, it was met with widespread rejection from the fans, the rest of clubs and the players, who protested during LaLiga games last weekend, standing still for 15 seconds before starting the match, a protest that the TV broadcast censored in many of the matches.
Seeing "the uncertainty that has arisen in Spain over the past few weeks", the promoter backed off, and LaLiga had no choice but to cancel the plans, as they announced Tuesday evening in a statement.
The Spanish football league said that they "deeply regret that this project, which represented a historic and unparalleled opportunity for the international expansion of Spanish soccer, will not be able to move forward", claiming that it would have been "a decisive step in the global growth of the competition, strengthening the international presence of clubs, the positioning of players, and the visibility of Spanish soccer in a strategic market such as the United States".
The problems of the LaLiga match in Miami
However, even the players of the clubs, Barcelona and Villarreal, were angry about the decision, that was taken without their approval, and would force them to do a totally unnecessary trip in an already packed calendar. UEFA had initially approved the match, but claimed that it would not set a precedent and they would fight for football to remain "anchored in its home environment".
Finally, many people though that would also falsify the competition, benefitting mostly Barcelona (they would play an "away" match in Miami, a city where most people would support them), and most Villarreal fans would miss the opportunity to support their team in one of the most important matches of the season (Villarreal is currently third in LaLiga).
Did you like the idea of having a LaLiga match played abroad?
