How Real Madrid worked behind the scenes to stop Villarreal vs Barcelona in Miami | OneFootball

In a massive win for Real Madrid, La Liga on Tuesday announced that the match between Barcelona and Villarreal, which was supposed to take place in Miami in December, will not happen.

The league put out a statement that acknowledged the recent chaos and uncertainty within the Spanish footballing ecosystem, over its decision to hold a league match outside of Spain.

In cognisance of that, La Liga decided to cancel their project, which the league said would have been a major step towards internationalising the Spanish top-flight.

Real Madrid, to that end, were a key factor in La Liga yielding under pressure, as Los Blancos were one of the main clubs opposed to the project.

How Real Madrid made it happen

As reported by OK Diario (h/t Mundo Deportivo), it took a lot of behind-the-scenes effort for Real Madrid to ensure that La Liga faces enough backlash for the project.

At first, officials at Valdebebas moved quickly after La Liga’s Miami plan was made public. The club sent formal letters of protest to every relevant authority, including the CSD, the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), UEFA, and even FIFA, voicing their disapproval of the move.

Real Madrid had to work behind the scenes to put pressure on La Liga. (Photo by Alexander Hassenstein/Getty Images)

While most institutions remained silent, Real Madrid found support from the Spanish Players’ Association (AFE), which coordinated protests over the weekend.

Players across the Spanish top flight stood still for 15 seconds before kickoff as a sign of protest against the move, thus adding more pressure on La Liga.

Led internally by Dani Carvajal, Real Madrid also reached beyond Spain, contacting CONCACAF and U.S. Soccer to express their objections.

The club even engaged in discussions with NFL owners, including Stephen Ross, whose company Relevent had partnered with La Liga to host the game at Hard Rock Stadium in Miami.

In the end, these persistent efforts paid off, with La Liga eventually being forced to put out a statement cancelling the project.