The idea behind the move is to copy what the NFL and NBA are doing by taking games to Mexico, South America, and Europe as a way to promote their brands and bring the best Basketball and American football to the global community.

The difference between LaLiga and the NFL, MLB, and NBA is that the NFL, MLB, and NBA are the best leagues of their respective sports, and already have a following in the countries in question in which they visit. For LaLiga/soccer, it wouldn’t even be special, as the Premier League, Serie A, and Liga MX are all contemplating doing the same thing, essentially fracturing the audience and the uniqueness of it all.

Greed, spectacle, and exposure

Greed is basically what is behind LaLiga taking league games to the US, greed to earn American dollars and drive-up revenue aborad. Even Tebas in his interview with Expansion knows what he’s doing is a stunt: “I don’t know when, but this time LaLiga will play official matches abroad, I think it could be in the 2025-26 season. The official match in the US will strengthen our position in the North American market, which is the second for La Liga after Spain. Other very competitive leagues are coming so we can’t always do the same thing, they would overtake us.”

Still, if done right, and being the first out the gate, LaLiga stands to position itself well. The proposed match to bring Barcelona – Girona back in 2018 had more to do with bringing Messi, Suarez, and Pique to Miami than Barcelona, the game itself, meaningless. Girona’s chances of defeating Barcelona in Florida were as slim as playing the game at the Camp Nou or North Pole.

To make any kind of meaningful dent, playing a Spanish Derby between Real Madrid – Barcelona in the United States would gain worldwide attention. Possibly adding an extra week to the schedule to appease fans in Spain would also be prudent. Making it a kind of MLS rivalry week would also be smart, it would keep the audience in Spain invested with local derbies going on, and Barcelona – Real Madrid in the US could be a main course of said week. Also by adding the extra week, no one feels left out in the long run.

If LaLiga bring Real Madrid – Celta, all their selling is a traveling circus looking to cash in on the American market.

For the right exposure, LaLiga needs to think about the right product and their only true global product is Barcelona vs Real Madrid, anything less could lose out to all the other major sports if a big game of those sports is played that same weekend.

For LaLiga coming to the US is either about going big or going home, Real Madrid – Barcelona could get national attention, bringing Real Madrid to play Almeria is as meaningless as having the Mets play the Orioles in Boston.

At the summit, Tebas stated that, “Messi did not finish his career in La Liga because Leo and FC Barcelona did not agree. I wish he could have stayed and finished his sporting career in Spain. It would have been the best for him, for me and for Barcelona”.

The loss of Messi and Cristiano Ronaldo in LaLiga may not have a long-term effect on the league, but it certainly is a key element that is missing when considering LaLiga was the place to watch the two best players in the world playing for the league’s two best clubs.

Tebas on Luis Rubiales

When it comes to Luis Rubiales, the LaLiga president held his ground, “At the level of Spanish football it has the greatest impact at the institutional level, at the country level, too. There are more than 130,000 digital news articles about Rubiales and all in the same line, and there has never been an impact of such a level.

“That indicates that the issue is very serious, beyond sexual harassment or not, it is inconceivable, unpresentable that a boss can ask an employee, grabbing her by the head, ‘give me a kiss’…”

“Mr. Rubiales has to know that he cannot grab a player like a sack of potatoes. He has to know that he cannot grab the Queen by the shoulder, and he also touched his genitals in a press box, it points to a behavior of how he understands life towards women that comes from many years ago. I wasn’t surprised.”

Tebas on LaLiga attendance and video games

When asked about the presentation of LaLiga, Tebas suggested that presentation is everything and that teams that struggle with attendance or filling their respective stadiums should try and group the home supporters together to give the feeling of a more filled stadium, especially for television broadcasts.

Another aspect that Tebas would like to incorporate with LaLiga comes from video games, in which through the use of AI technology a Esports player watching a LaLiga match live can create a play as the game is progressing rather than just watch it as it unfolds.

The technology is used in the top five European leagues with the exception of the Spanish top division. What makes this so significant is not simply that they have possessed it for a while, but that it hasn’t been put into action until recently.

In 2009, the English Premier League was the first in the world to implement the change, and six years later, the German, French, Italian, and Dutch leagues had all done the same. The system detects if the ball has passed the goal line using a network of cameras placed around the goal, and alerts the referee through a wristwatch computer if it has.

Why does La Liga president Javier Tebas not want to implement the goal-line technology?

Many recent incidents have embroiled the president of La Liga, Javier Tebas in controversy. He has been scrutinized for his remarks and his handling of the Vinicius problem. And now the supporters are turning against the 60-year-old because of his choice over the use of the aforementioned technology.

Importantly, Javier Tebas has determined that starting with the next La Liga season, goal-line technology will not be employed. The explanation he offered for his risky move was met with criticism from supporters.

Goal-line technology is reportedly something Javier Tebas doesn’t want to employ since it costs €3 million, as per Spanish outlet El Larguero. The La Liga boss is reportedly against spending too much on technology because he thinks it is unnecessary.

Now it may not be a competition rather a collaboration between the two next big stars in world soccer. Tebas knows that if Real Madrid can pull off the signings of Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland, LaLiga’s profile will increase after the loss of Cristiano Ronaldo, Lionel Messi, and the financial crisis of Barcelona.

While Tebas does not have any inside information or sources, it’s a no brainer that the arrival of two of the biggest stars in world soccer can only help Spanish soccer.

Javier Tebas on Kylian Mbappe and Erling Haaland signings

“Madrid will get Mbappe and [Erling] Haaland as the others [Barcelona and Juventus] are half [financially] ruined,” Tebas stated, “That Mbappe comes is great news for LaLiga. It would be a joy for LaLiga. It’s the best thing that could happen to LaLiga.”

“I have no information regarding Mbappe… But I’ve seen few cases of players who have six months left on their contracts that have not renewed their contracts and then went on to continue at the club.” Mbappe will most likely sign with Real Madrid on a free transfer, as early as March, but Haaland would command a strong transfer fee, but Real Madrid may have competition from Manchester City.