LaLiga deny RFEF claims on agreed season conclusion
As the various authorities in Spanish football met by teleconference to discuss the future post-Covid-19 restrictions, plans continue to be laid out.
Spanish football’s Monitoring Committee have agreed to follow a protocol for when the government authorises the return of football in the country. Or that was what was being reported earlier but, since then, LaLiga have denied what the Federation (RFEF) had claimed.
Confusion over agreements made for LaLiga
The committee consists of representatives from different areas of Spanish football - the RFEF, LaLiga, the Association of Spanish Footballers (AFE), women’s football clubs, and the Futsal men’s and women’s associations.
We had reported that the expectation in Spain was that the 2019/20 domestic competitions would be completed before the following season commences, and this is consistent with much of what has been said regarding the plans of European football’s governing body, UEFA. The caveat that holds constant, of course, is that there is still much uncertainty surrounding the coronavirus pandemic and how the spread is curtailed will define everything else.
The agreement that had been announced between the various groups was to set up the potential for playing matches every 72 hours or so and, with the return likely to come in the heat of summer, there will two mandatory hydration breaks built into the games. These, like we’ve seen in other competitions through the warmer months, will be split one per half and will be controlled by the referee. As well as this, all those present at the teleconference chaired by Luis Rubiales had been said to have taken for granted that the games would have to be played behind closed doors, at least until September. This is something that had concerned Javier Tebas.
And LaLiga have now come out and denied these agreements, saying that no discussion on these matters have been held. On this we await further clarity from all parties.
There are still a number of other factors that have not yet been agreed upon, including player contract extensions, although recent changes in FIFA’s guidance should see players remain with their current position until leagues are concluded. This will be standard across Europe.
The RFEF has scheduled another meeting for Wednesday for its board of directors where Rubiales will report on all these agreements. In addition, the president will respond to questions about the electoral process in the Federation, something that has been paralysed by the pandemic, but which should resume in the autumn.