Uefa is expected to rule in September on a proposal to stage a La Liga fixture between Barcelona and Villarreal in Miami, a move that would mark the first time a major domestic league has held a match on foreign territory. The request, submitted by the Spanish football federation, will be considered at the governing body's executive committee meeting in Tirana on 11 September.
If Uefa does not block the proposal, the plan would still require approval from Fifa, US Soccer and Concacaf. The match, scheduled for December, would be played at the Hard Rock Stadium, home of the Miami Dolphins.
Within Uefa, there is broad acceptance that rejecting the proposal would be difficult without altering its statutes. Legal arguments against moving matches abroad have lost weight since the US-based promoter Relevent Sports agreed a settlement with Fifa in April 2024 to dismiss the global governing body from a lawsuit challenging its policy of barring league games from being staged in other countries.
Uefa's president, Aleksander Ceferin, has expressed reservations, saying: "I don't think it's a good thing," while acknowledging that legal recourse is limited. The EU sport commissioner, Glenn Micallef, was more forthright, describing the proposals as "betrayal" and "the first big stress test for governance since the Super League."
Should the proposal be approved, discussions are likely on limiting the practice, potentially to two matches per season between the same teams to avoid competitive imbalance. The viability of another overseas fixture, between Milan and Como in Perth, Australia, in February, will also enter Uefa's thinking.
