FIFA is moving towards ending decades of football tradition by reviewing the rules that prevent domestic league games from being played in other countries.
However, fans may object to their teams’ home matches potentially being moved thousands of miles away.
The United States and Saudi Arabia are expected to be interested in hosting competitive games from top European leagues.
FIFA recently agreed to withdraw from an ongoing court case in New York, filed by promoter Relevent, which challenged the current policy.
In April, Spanish league president Javier Tebas expressed hope that La Liga would soon be able to play games overseas.
“I don’t know when, but this time LaLiga will play official games abroad. I think it could be from the 2025–26 season,” Tebas told Expansión.
“An official game in the United States would strengthen our position in the North American market, which is the second [biggest] for La Liga after Spain.
“Other really competitive leagues are coming, so we can’t always do the same thing. They would jump ahead of us.”
The new FIFA policy is likely to appeal to the growing number of international owners of European clubs, including the wave of U.S. investors in the English Premier League, Italy’s Serie A, and France’s Ligue 1, as well as state-backed teams like Abu Dhabi-owned Manchester City, Qatar-owned Paris Saint-Germain, and Saudi-owned Newcastle United.
FIFA is forming a panel of 10-15 representatives from various football stakeholders to advise on amending the rules regarding “out-of-territory” games within the next few months.
These rules were last updated in 2014.
Previous attempts to hold European League games abroad, such as taking Barcelona to Miami in 2019, were blocked. U.S. promoters are seeking to offer fans more than just preseason exhibition games featuring the world’s best club teams.
FIFA directed its working group, which is yet to be appointed, to consider fairness and give “advance notice to fans who may miss the opportunity to attend a home or away match in the home territory.”
Other factors for the FIFA panel include “respect for the recognised structure of international football” and potential disruption to fans, teams and leagues in the country hosting “out-of-territory” games.