OFFICIAL: Barca’s historic match unexpectedly canceled

22/10/2025 20:28:00 esportapi

La Liga has formally called off the Villarreal vs Barcelona game scheduled in Miami due to ongoing pressure from various parties.

After a series of protests across Spanish football stadiums last weekend, the La Liga match between Hansi Flick’s Barcelona and Marcelino Garcia Toral’s Villarreal, originally planned at Hard Rock Stadium (Miami, USA), was officially canceled. Organizers stated there was “not enough time” to stage such a historic event.

Initially, this match was set for the weekend of December 20–21 at Estadio de la Cerámica (Villarreal’s home ground), but later moved to Miami Gardens as announced in August. The Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) had approved the proposal to hold the Barcelona vs Villarreal match in the USA. However, the cancellation decision came right after players from Real Oviedo and Espanyol protested before their match last weekend.

CHÍNH THỨC: Trận đấu lịch sử của Barca bất ngờ bị hủy bỏ 726236 — La Liga’s report confirms that the Villarreal vs Barcelona match in Miami has been canceled.

Although the Spanish Super Cup has been held in Saudi Arabia for 4 of the past 5 seasons, this would have been the first European domestic league match played on American soil. Due to the event’s scale and complexity, the outlet The Athletic previously revealed that the match could be postponed.

Event organizer Relevant issued a statement: “Relevant has informed La Liga of the need to postpone the Villarreal vs Barcelona match in Miami on December 20. Given the current situation in Spain, we do not have sufficient time to execute an event of this magnitude. Selling tickets without a clear plan would be irresponsible.”

However, La Liga later confirmed the match was not merely postponed but completely canceled. The official statement read:

“La Liga deeply regrets that this project, a historic opportunity for the internationalization of Spanish football, cannot proceed. Hosting an official match outside Spain would have been a significant step in expanding global reach, strengthening the international standing of clubs, players, and the Spanish football brand in strategic markets like the USA.”

CHÍNH THỨC: Trận đấu lịch sử của Barca bất ngờ bị hủy bỏ 726237 — The Barcelona vs Villarreal match in Miami faced strong opposition from other La Liga clubs.

La Liga affirmed that the project fully complied with existing regulations and did not compromise the competition’s integrity, but “some authorities opposed it for other reasons.” The statement also emphasized:

“In an increasingly competitive environment, where leagues like the Premier League and the Champions League continue to expand their influence and revenue-generating capacity, initiatives like this are essential to ensure the sustainability and growth of Spanish football. Abandoning such opportunities limits new income streams, affects investment and club competitiveness, and diminishes the global exposure of the entire national football ecosystem.”

Finally, La Liga expressed gratitude to the clubs for their “cooperation and goodwill” in this project, while reaffirming:

“We will continue striving to bring Spanish football to every corner of the world, pursuing an open, modern, and competitive vision for the benefit of clubs, players, and fans.”

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