It is the controversy of the moment in Spain: the Federation has already started the steps so that the liga duel of the 17th day between Villarreal and FC Barcelona is played in Miami. A big financial hit for the Spanish football bodies and the clubs involved, but inevitably, on the side of the supporters, we have it bad and Spanish public opinion is generally against.
And Real Madrid has just published a long press release in which he expressed his opposition to the organization of liga matches abroad. “Real Madrid CF wishes to express to its members, its supporters and football supporters in general its firmer refusal of the proposal to play outside of Spain the match corresponding to the 17th day of the first division championship between Villarreal CF and FC Barcelona. This measure, promoted without prior information or consultation of the clubs participating in this competition, violates the essential principle of territorial reciprocity which governs the championship competitions with two laps (one home match and the other to the opposing team), by modifying the competitive balance and by granting an induced sporting advantage to the requesting clubs. The integrity of the competition requires that all the matches take place under the same conditions for all the teams. Unilaterally modify this regime breaks equality between the contenders, compromises the legitimacy of the results and creates an unacceptable precedent which opens the door to exceptions based on interest other than strictly sporty, with an obvious impact on sporting integrity and the risk of falsification of competition. If this proposal was implemented, its consequences would be so serious that they would mean a before and an after for the world of football ”thus writes the club which adds having seized FIFA, UEFA and the Superior Council of Spanish Sport.
