Spanish Court of Arbitration for Sport ruled that players' collective protest against the league's decision to add La Liga matches overseas did not constitute an illegal strike..

The Athletic, citing local Spanish reports on Wednesday and reported that the Spanish Court of Arbitration for Sport has dismissed a lawsuit filed by La Liga, ruling that the players' 15-second collective protest against the league's decision to add La Liga matches in the United States did not constitute an illegal strike.

According to the report, the court ruled that the players had the right to express their dissatisfaction with their unfamiliar and unpleasant working environment and conditions. Their collective protest fell within the legitimate scope of "freedom of expression" and did not constitute an illegal strike. Instead, it exposed the league's lack of transparency, sincerity, and consistent effective communication on the matter.

The Spanish Court of Arbitration for Sport added that this 15-second collective protest was not only the first of its kind in Spanish and European football, but also globally, reflecting the players' real dissatisfaction with the overly congested schedule and lack of rest.

The court hopes this incident will serve as a reminder to countries worldwide, UEFA, FIFA, and FIFPRO to engage in transparent and respectful in-depth public discussions on the issue of overly congested schedules.

The Athletic believes that the Spanish Court of Arbitration for Sport's ruling will undoubtedly have a deterrent effect on the Serie A, which may intend to follow suit.

At the same time, it will also serve as a warning to the Premier League, which has long desired to add a 39th league match overseas.

In August 2025, the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) announced that it had accepted La Liga's proposal to add the league’s matches overseas.

According to the proposal, the league decided to move the La Liga match between Barcelona and Villarreal to Miami, Florida, USA, with the match scheduled for December 20th of that year.

However, this announcement immediately drew criticism from the Spanish Professional Footballers' Association (AFE), and the players subsequently staged a 15-second collective protest before each La Liga match from October 17th to 20th. This protest prompted the league to shelve the plan two days later.

In response to the protest, La Liga immediately filed a lawsuit against the players in the Spanish Court of Arbitration for Sport, claiming that the protest caused the league to lose €8.7 million in revenue and also accusing the players of committing an illegal strike.

In October 2025, UEFA said that the authorities would have to allow Serie A and La Liga's proposal to add matches overseas.

At the time, UEFA argued that there was currently no legal framework preventing them or even FIFA, from preventing these leagues from doing so to increase overseas investment and broadcasting revenue.

In December, Serie A unilaterally announced plans to move the Serie A match between AC Milan and Como to Perth, Australia; however, this proposal was shelved shortly after its announcement due to overwhelming criticism.

Image source: Internet / The Athletic