Villarreal—Atleti in Miami looking less likely

We’re still awaiting a court decision (due Thursday) on the matter, but there have been a couple of recent developments in Spain that are looking ominous for Villarreal’s plans to play their December 6 match against Atleti in Miami.

First, RFEF head Luis Rubiales, who had been fairly quiet for the past few weeks, has again dismissed any willingness to concede ground on the issue. Rubiales believes changing the format of the Spanish Supercup, moving the matches to the Christmas break, and holding them in Saudi Arabia, which they have announced is happening, is okay, presumably because the games don’t count in the league standings. (The clubs taking part in this might disagree given the travel, though it is during a league break).

And now Real Madrid has put its oar in, lodging a complaint (apparently sent to the RFEF in support of their position as part of the court proceedings, though I am not certain about this). Even if the judge rules in favor of the league, there are still other permissions that are needed, and the time to come up with those is very short. So, we shall see.