La Liga Representative Supports League Playing Match in Mexico After USA Plans

Nuno Perez-Pla, La Liga's representative for Mexico, has said he expects a top-flight Spanish game to be played in the country in the coming years.

Speaking after it was confirmed La Liga will have a competitive game staged in the United States over the course of a 15-year partnership, Perez-Pla was asked about the prospect of Mexico also hosting a game.

"The potential that soccer has in the U.S. is what has convinced us that it was the first step to take La Liga outside of Spain," he said, per Marca (h/t Adrianna Garcia of ESPN). "But I'm certain that in the coming years we will think of other destinations such as Mexico, although initially we will do so in the U.S."

Perez-Pla went on to say that Mexico is the "second-most important country" for Spanish football in the world, citing the cultural similarities between the two nations, as well as the number of Mexican players who have gone on to feature in La Liga.

In a separate piece from Garcia, it's added that La Liga have offered no guarantees that Spain's two biggest teams—Real Madrid and Barcelona—will feature in the matches in the United States.

According to Bleacher Report's Dean Jones, the plans to take competitive matches from Spain overseas are said to be part of a strategy from La Liga to catch up with the Premier League's marketing power:

The reaction to the decision to take a La Liga match to the United States was mixed, with Spanish football journalist Rik Sharma making his feelings clear on the matter:

It doesn't appear to have been too popular with a lot of the players involved in the competition either.

Per BBC Sport, the players' union (AFE) said they were not consulted over any decision to play matches in the United States, with the organisation's president, David Aganzo, saying the plans lack "common sense" and that the captains of the 20 teams in the division are "outraged."

One of the concerns supporters have about fixtures overseas is the precedent it sets for more globalisation in the future, and it appears clear more games on foreign soil are being lined up from the Spanish top flight.

However, fans of the division in Mexico would no doubt be delighted if the likes of Lionel Messi, Gareth Bale and Antoine Griezmann were in action in their country in the future.