Judge Denies La Liga's Request to Play Villarreal vs. Atletico Madrid in Miami
A Madrid judge has declined La Liga's request to have Villarreal's home match with Atletico Madrid played in Miami.
Per Adriana Garcia of ESPN, La Liga was hopeful the game could be played in the United States on December 6, despite the fact it had not received approval from the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF).
With both clubs said to be keen on moving the fixture, La Liga sought a court injunction that would permit the match to be played. That motion was declined in the Spanish capital on Friday by judge Moises Guillamon.
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"La Liga respects this decision, which does not prejudge the substance of the matter, which will be permanently settled in February 2020," said a league statement, per Garcia. "Staging an official La Liga match abroad is part of a long-term La Liga strategy for international growth."
The Spanish Football Podcast provided the statement in full:
La Liga's attempts to stage games in the United States coincides with a 15-year partnership it has agreed with Relevant Sports, in which it hopes to increase the league's popularity in North America.
Spanish football writer Andre Gaffney said he doesn't think the decision will go down well with La Liga president Javier Tebas:
Per Garcia, there is set to be a court case regarding Spanish top-flight games being played overseas in February 2020. La Liga sued the RFEF last year after it blocked a potential fixture between Barcelona and Girona in the United States.
The RFEF has previously said it would reject a game being played away from Spain as it would "affect the equality and integrity of the competition."
An agreement was recently made by the Federation to take the Spanish Super Cup to Saudi Arabia for the next three seasons, with the event changing from a two-legged match between two sides to a four-team tournament.
Villarreal are in 11th place in La Liga, while Atletico are third, just a point back on joint-leaders Barcelona and Real Madrid, who both have a game in hand.
