Javier Tebas Challenges CSD: 'They Have No Authority to Stop the Miami Match'

Javier Tebas, the president of LaLiga, continues his campaign to support the match between Villarreal and Barcelona scheduled for December 20 in Miami. Last week, UEFA gave its approval to the project, despite paradoxically expressing disapproval of domestic league matches being held outside national borders.

Although the project has faced much opposition, with the approval of the Spanish Football Federation and UEFA, Tebas sees no threat from the Spanish Sports Council opposing its execution. 'They have no authority to stop it. The rule is clear. The only authorities were UEFA and the Federation. We are awaiting communication from the American Federation with CONCACAF. They will have to comply. I am not worried,' said Tebas, overlooking the fact that FIFA also needs to give consent. In a defiant tone, Tebas went further when discussing the possibility of the Spanish Sports Council posing any obstacles to the historic match in Miami. 'We have asked the CSD to apply the rule of law,' he added after the presentation of the documentary 'El Sentido', about LaLiga Genuine Moeve.

The Spanish Footballers' Association (AFE) has expressed opposition, and even some players set to participate in the Miami match, like Frenkie de Jong, have been very critical. This seems not to concern Javier Tebas. 'I am not so sure AFE wants to stop it,' said the president of LaLiga. 'In 2018, when we started the first match, we had an agreement with AFE on what we were going to do. We have already told them we will do it. We will play a match with unemployed players. We have already sent that documentation. We have asked the CSD to apply the rule of law. Superficial evaluations are being made. We had to wait to provide information until reaching certain milestones. It is normal for players to think about rest.'

The Miami match will be held at the Hard Rock Stadium, a venue with over 65,000 seats that has hosted international football matches and will now be the stage for an official Spanish League match, an unprecedented event. Playing away from the Estadio de La Cerámica will deprive Villarreal of their home advantage, raising critical voices about 'competition distortion'. However, Javier Tebas argues that 'altering is not penalized' because 'we have already altered the schedules and nothing happened. Distorting neither. They play 18 at home and 18 away. Villarreal, in their last six matches against Barcelona, have lost all six. The influence is not at that level.'

One of the most critical teams of the Miami match has been Real Madrid, denouncing it as a distortion of the competition. 'Tickets were also distributed between the two teams in the Super Cup, and the finals are filled with Real Madrid fans, and no one says anything,' Tebas noted, clearly alluding to the white team. Continuing with the white team, the president of LaLiga denied having a battle with Florentino Pérez: 'I do not fight battles with Florentino. I evaluate what I am in. I have already said that Florentino never loses, he is tenacious and very tough in his work. I never count him out.'

These words clearly allude to last week's meeting of the European Football Clubs, which Barcelona seems to have joined at the expense of the Super League project. 'The Super League was the chronicle of a death foretold,' Tebas stated before acknowledging that he is pleased that 'Barcelona has made a different decision than being in a project that would do much harm to national football. I am not a fan of the ECA either, but it is better for them to be in the ECA than in the Super League.'

Regarding the financial compensation Villarreal and Barcelona will receive for the Miami match, Tebas was not only unclear but left the matter up in the air: 'We have the habit of monetizing everything.' 'The NFL does not come to Madrid for the money it collects. Nor does the NBA go to Europe for that. They go because they build a brand and gain fans. Projects are consolidated at the audiovisual level. We have many fans in the United States. Especially Catalans,' he said, clearly alluding to the fact that the Barcelona team will play as if they were at home in Miami.

The president of LaLiga also did not specify the money that could be raised from the Miami match. 'Regarding the clubs, it is up to the promoter of Relevent. It is not known what will be earned at the box office. It will arise from the final settlement. The first thing is the Villarreal fans who want to go. I insist, it is not a project that seeks economic results,' he concluded.