European soccer governing body UEFA has “reluctantly” approved plans for the Spanish LaLiga and Italian Serie A top flights to stage regular-season games abroad in the current 2025-26 campaign, despite its own substantial reservations.
In a statement, the body said that while it stands in “clear opposition to domestic league matches being played outside their home country”, it approved the plans for the pair of games “on an exceptional basis."
This means that LaLiga sides FC Barcelona and Villareal will face each other in Miami, USA, on December 21, while in February 2026, Serie A giants AC Milan will face Como in Perth, Australia.
In a statement, UEFA explained that despite the aforementioned opposition, the global FIFA governing body currently has no regulatory framework with which it can stop leagues from staging games abroad at this moment.
UEFA president Aleksander Ceferin commented: “League matches should be played on home soil; anything else would disenfranchise loyal match-going fans and potentially introduce distortive elements in competitions.”
Following the body’s executive committee meeting in Tirana, Albania, in September, UEFA says it undertook a series of consultations with “stakeholders” that it said upheld the idea that the international game plans lacked support, and upheld criticisms from fans, clubs, players, and European institutions.
Indeed, in August, EU Sports Commissioner Glenn Micallef yesterday described the moves as “a betrayal of the fans” in a biting comment that prompted a response from Serie A itself.
Ceferin continued: “Our consultation confirmed the breadth of these concerns. I would like to thank the 55 national associations for their constructive and responsible engagement on such a sensitive issue.
"While it is regrettable to have to let these two games go ahead, this decision is exceptional and shall not be seen as setting a precedent. Our commitment is clear: to protect the integrity of national leagues and ensure that football remains anchored in its home environment."
In 2024, FIFA set up a working group to examine the impact of overseas domestic fixtures, having previously opposed the concept.
European leagues stand to commercially benefit to a significant level from taking games overseas, through increased commercial revenue being available in - in the cases of Serie A and LaLiga - the US and Australia.
