La Liga have confirmed that they will play at least one regular match a season in North America.
It is the first venture of its kind and will see a competitive match from a top European league played in a foreign country. The first match could be played this season after La Liga penned a 15-year partnership with Relevant Sports.
La Liga is optimistic that the new venture, called La Liga North America, will see them compete with the Premier League for worldwide popularity and boost revenues from sponsors and media rights for the Spanish top-flight.
La Liga president Javier Tebas said:”We're devoted to growing the passion for soccer around the world. This ground-breaking agreement is certain to give a major impulse to the popularity of the beautiful game in the U.S. and Canada.
“Relevent has filled stadiums across the U.S. with the International Champions Cup, [and] we’re thrilled to partner with them on a joint mission to grow soccer in North America.”
While Premier League, La Liga as well as Serie A clubs on a regular basis play pre-season matches in North America, competitive matches have been a no-go for leagues.
The Premier League flirted with the idea of a 39th match played outside of England last decade, but the negative response from fans and players saw the idea promptly quashed.
No pronouncement has been made as to what cities the matches might be played in or which team would be involved, however, it is hard to see teams like of Real Madrid or Barcelona agreeing to travel that far for a match in the middle of the season.
This article was most recently revised and updated 1 year ago
