Villarreal-Barça in Miami: AFE protest action on Matchday 9 of the 2025-26 LALIGA EA Sports

"The AFE, with the support of the first division captains, announces that at all matches corresponding to Matchday 9 of the Spanish first division national championship, at the start of each match, the footballers will symbolically protest against the lack of transparency, dialogue and consistency on the part of LALIGA regarding the possibility of playing a match of the competition in the United States," stated the Spanish Footballers' Association on 17/10/2025.

The AFE is opposed to LALIGA's decision to stage the Villarreal CF - FC Barcelona game (Matchday 17 of the 2025-26 LALIGA EA Sports) in Miami (Florida, USA) on 20/12/2025. This request was forwarded by the RFEF to UEFA, which "exceptionally approved" it on 06/10/2025 (see "further reading" section).

This protest was manifested by the players kicking off just 15 seconds after the referee's first whistle, during the nine games on Matchday 9 of the 2025-26 season in the Spanish top flight, played from Friday to Sunday. During the first few games, the production team either concealed the sequence from viewers or broadcast it in…