Holding league matches abroad risks 'breaking football', says UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin

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·08 de outubro de 2025

Holding league matches abroad risks 'breaking football', says UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin

UEFA ‘reluctantly’ approved plans for domestic matches to be played overseas on Monday

UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin believes holding matches abroad risks ‘breaking’ football after permission was granted for La Liga and Serie A to stage games in the United States and Australia.

Vídeos OneFootball

Approval was ‘reluctantly’ granted by UEFA on Monday for Villarreal vs Barcelona to be held in Miami, and AC Milan vs Como in Perth, Australia.

Milan midfielder Adrien Rabiot branded the decision ‘completely crazy’, while UEFA’s executive committee added that they had found a ‘widespread lack of support’ for the plans, but had no clear legal framework to deny the motion.

But Ceferin, who described UEFA’s ruling as ‘regrettable’, maintains that football must stay true to its grassroots rather than focusing on ‘balance sheets’ and ‘entertainment’.

Speaking to the General Assembly of European Football Clubs in Rome today, he said: "Football is not just about balance sheets. It's not just entertainment.

"It's life in our communities. It is the streets, the clubs and the fans that shape it, and if we pull it too far away from those roots, we risk breaking it. In uncertain times, football is our anchor."

Barcelona hope to stage a La Liga match against Villarreal at Miami’s Hard Rock Stadium

Middle East Images/AFP via Getty

He continued, reaffirming UEFA’s opposition to a proposed Super League: "Lasting value comes only from unity, from balance and from reforms that strengthen everyone, not just a few.

"UEFA will never and would never organise a competition for 12 clubs only. UEFA wants inclusion.

"Together with EFC, we will make sure that our club football is inclusive and that everybody has a chance to win the best competitions."

Football Supporters Europe said on Monday: "We urge LaLiga and Serie A to act for the greater good of football and withdraw their plans rather than push ahead in the face of overwhelming opposition from the rest of the football family and the European institutions.

"We call on FIFA to uphold and reinforce their current regulations and reject the applications to relocate these domestic fixtures abroad. There is still time to do right by clubs, players, officials, supporters, and communities."

Now that the clubs have approval from their confederation, UEFA, all that remains is a green light from the host confederations - CONCACAF, the confederation for North and Central America and the Caribbean, and the Asian Football Confederation (AFC).

The current regulations on staging matches overseas were agreed by the FIFA Council in 2018, but were challenged in the United States courts by marketing agency Relevent. The settling of that case in April 2024 has opened the door for leagues to stage games overseas, with a new framework still under discussion.

Relevent is UEFA's sole marketing agency for the sale of its club competition media rights for the 2027-2033 cycle.

Additional reporting: Press Association