BARCELONA: Barcelona coach Hansi Flick and his players are not pleased at having to travel 4,500 miles to play a regular season La Liga match near Miami in December.&nbsp;Replying to a question at a press conference on Friday, Flick made his feelings clear.&nbsp;&ldquo;My players are not happy, I am not happy, but La Liga decided that we will play this game,&rdquo; he said.&nbsp;The December 20 match will be played at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, home of the NFL&rsquo;s Miami Dolphins.&nbsp;Barcelona president Joan Laporta has defended the Spanish league game by saying it represents the opportunity to further push into the American sports market.&nbsp;But for Flick and his players, it represents added travel before a short winter break. Barcelona will also travel to Saudi Arabia for the Spanish Super Cup starting January 7.&nbsp;Barcelona midfielder Frenkie de Jong has criticized playing the game in the US, saying players are already overloaded with travel and a packed playing calendar.&nbsp;Like Barcelona, Villarreal is also playing in the Champions League this season.&nbsp;La Liga president Javier Tebas has said that the league plans to make an international soccer match an annual event. The league has chartered planes to bring to Florida what it estimates will be 2,000 to 3,000 fans from Villarreal, which is the home team.&nbsp;Barcelona plays Girona in the Spanish league on Saturday.

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Barcelona coach Hansi Flick and his players voiced frustration over La Liga’s decision to stage a December 20 match in Miami, citing excessive travel before their winter break and upcoming Spanish Super Cup in Saudi Arabia.

Barcelona coach and his players are 'not happy' with Miami match

NEW YORK: La Liga plans to make an international soccer match an annual event after announcing Barcelona and Villarreal will play outside Miami on December 20, Spanish league president Javier Tebas said during an interview with The Associated Press.&nbsp;Becoming the first major European league to move a competitive match abroad, La Liga is following the model of the NFL, which has played in London since 2007 and this season also has games in Berlin, Dublin, Madrid and Sao Paulo.&nbsp;&ldquo;The idea is to follow a similar model but with one difference: We will only play one match abroad,&rdquo; Tebas said of future schedules. &quot;So I strongly believe that what they are doing is something very positive for the competition. They are letting people all over the world to know the competition, to engage with the competition.&quot;&nbsp;The soccer match will be played at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami Gardens, home of the NFL&#39;s Miami Dolphins. La Liga intends to announce future international games with longer lead times. It usually releases its schedule around the start of July.&nbsp;&ldquo;It&rsquo;s a strategy that will help to increase revenues in the mid- to long-term, because we will increase the value of our partners, our sponsors. We will increase the value of audiovisual rights with our broadcasters,&rdquo; he said. &ldquo;Hopefully we will increase the interest, the engagement of the audience in other countries as we are expecting to bring this one game every year to different countries around the world.&rdquo;&nbsp;Italy&#39;s Serie A is planning to move a Feb. 8 match between Milan and Como from San Siro to Perth, Australia, because the Italian stadium won&#39;t be available after hosting the opening ceremony of the 2026 Winter Olympics two days earlier.&nbsp;Tebas said the experience of playing in an NFL stadium with many food and beverage options and gathering areas could spark improvements in Spain. Real Madrid renovated Estadio Santiago Bernab&eacute;u and Osasuna revamped El Sadar.&nbsp; Construction is ongoing at Barcelona&#39;s Camp Nou, Betis&#39; Estadio Benito Villamar&iacute;n and Getafe&#39;s Estadio Coliseum, and Valencia has long-delayed plans for a Nou Mestalla.&nbsp;&ldquo;The objective is to increase the match day experience more than the two hours,&rdquo; Tebas said. &ldquo;The clubs are already working towards that objective.&rdquo;

Spain’s La Liga will make its international match an annual event, starting with Barcelona vs Villarreal in Miami on December 20,2025.  League president Javier Tebas said the initiative aims to boost revenues, engagement, and global reach.


Spain’s La Liga to stage its international match an annual event

MADRID:&nbsp;Vin&iacute;cius J&uacute;nior struck twice and Kylian Mbapp&eacute; scored before going off injured as Real Madrid beat third-placed Villarreal 3-1 to move to the top of La Liga on Saturday. Moments after scoring in the 81st minute, Mbapp&eacute; sat down and clutched his right ankle. The France star then made a gesture with his hands to signal he could not continue. Following brief treatment, he walked off unassisted and went straight down the tunnel. The win moved Madrid two points ahead of defending champion Barcelona, which can reclaim the lead with a win at Sevilla on Sunday but is missing star winger Lamine Yamal due to a pubic injury. Vin&iacute;cius netted in the 47th when he cut in from the left and his low strike clipped the heel of Santi Comesa&ntilde;a before wrong-footing goalkeeper Arnau Tenas. Vin&iacute;cius scored from the penalty spot in the 69th after being barged over. Mbapp&eacute; is Madrid&#39;s usual penalty taker, but let him have it, and Vin&iacute;cius squeezed a tame shot under the body of Tenas as he guessed correctly. Villarreal winger Georges Mikautadze pulled a goal back with a fine shot past Courtois from 20 meters. But the hard work was undone when defender Santiago Mouri&ntilde;o was sent off four minutes later for a second yellow card following a foul on Vin&iacute;cius. Villarreal then lost the ball carelessly, and Mbapp&eacute; swapped passes with Brahim D&iacute;az before guiding in his 14th goal in 10 games. Girona wins to put Mallorca lastStruggling Girona picked up a much-needed win after holding on to beat Valencia 2-1 to move off the bottom. Girona midfielder Iv&aacute;n Mart&iacute;n was sent off in the 80th minute for a second yellow card, and his teammates kept out Valencia in 10 minutes of stoppage time. Ukrainian striker Vladyslav Vanat put Girona ahead from outside the penalty area. Diego L&oacute;pez equalized in the second half, but Girona regained the lead shortly after through Arnau Mart&iacute;nez following a set piece. Elsewhere, Athletic Bilbao moved up to fifth place with a scrappy 2-1 win against Mallorca, which dropped to last. Striker I&ntilde;aki Williams drew the foul and converted a penalty for Bilbao early. After Sam&uacute; Costa equalized in the second half, midfielder Alejandro Rego&rsquo;s goal restored the lead five minutes later. Mallorca&#39;s Antonio S&aacute;nchez was sent off in the last minute. Levante cruises to victoryLevante scored in each half in a 2-0 win at Oviedo. Right winger Carlos &Aacute;lvarez pounced in the 30th minute with a shot into the top left corner from Manu S&aacute;nchez&rsquo;s cross. Oviedo brought on 40-year-old midfielder Santi Cazorla, the former Spain international, early in the second half. But Cameroonian striker Karl Etta Eyong doubled the lead from close range following a corner.

Real Madrid's Kylian Mbappe, centre, celebrates with Vinicius Junior, left, and Brahim Diaz after scoring his side's third goal during the Spanish La Liga soccer match between Real Madrid and Villarreal at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium in Madrid, Spain, S

 Vinícius Júnior strikes twice; Kylian Mbappé scores before going off injured as his team beat third-placed Villarreal 3-1 to move to the top of La Liga.

Articles tagged with "la liga"

Barcelona coach and his players are 'not happy' with Miami match

Spain’s La Liga to stage its international match an annual event

Mbappé scores, suffers injury as Real Madrid defeats Villarreal