Spain’s LaLiga announced plans earlier this month to hold a Barcelona-Villareal game in Miami on Dec. 20. Let’s just say the players aren’t thrilled.
A match between Real Oviedo and Espanyol on Friday began with every player standing still for the first 15 seconds, a protest of LaLiga’s planned international game. The Association of Spanish Footballers announced before the game that similar protests will be held around the league, with the exception of games involving Barcelona and Villareal.
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However, no video of the first protest is available from the broadcast, as LaLiga appeared to respond by not showing the action on the field on the world television feed until the players started moving after 25 or so seconds.
Playing a league game outside of Spain has invited intense criticism from both players and fans, for reasons ranging from tradition to logistics.
Per ESPN, Barcelona coach Hansi Flick indicated his players weren’t happy about the 4,500 miles of travel needed to play a regular-season game:
“My players are not happy, I am not happy, but LaLiga decided that we will play this game,” Flick said at a news conference in reply to a question about his position on the game.
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However, Barcelona president Joan Laporta has reportedly defended the move as a way to push further into an American sports market where the club’s former star Lionel Messi is currently attracting significant attention. Barcelona is also scheduled to travel to Saudi Arabia for the Spanish Super Cup on Jan. 7.
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LaLiga president Javier Tebas has been pushing for an international game for years, with repeated opposition from players, fans and clubs. The plan went through this time after UEFA granted it permission, reportedly citing a lack of clear rules from FIFA to block such games.
The game is at the center of ever-shifting politics between a collection of clubs and governing bodies, but the end result is a game that Tebas sees as an annual event for the league, and one that players aren’t taking lying down.
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The union’s full statement announcing the protests, interpreted with Google Translate:
The Spanish Football Players’ Association, with the support of the Spanish First Division captains, announces that, during all matches corresponding to the ninth round of the Spanish National First Division League Championship, at the start of each match, the players will symbolically protest in protest of LALIGA’s lack of transparency, dialogue, and consistency regarding the possibility of playing a competition match in the United States.
The union has decided to exclude the players from FC Barcelona and Villarreal CF, the clubs requesting the project, from the initiative, despite sharing the underlying position and critical points. This is to prevent the protest action from being interpreted as a potential measure against any club.
In the face of LALIGA’s persistent refusals and unrealistic proposals, the Spanish Football Players’ Association categorically rejects a project that lacks the approval of the main players in our sport and demands that the employers’ association create a negotiating table where all information is shared and the exceptional characteristics of the project are analyzed, the needs and concerns of footballers are addressed, and the protection of their labor rights and compliance with current regulations are guaranteed.
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