Six clubs say no to weekend soccer strike

A Madrid court is scheduled to hear the arguments of the Professional Football League (LFP) on Tuesday in a dispute that may yet result in a strike among Spain's soccer clubs on April 2 and 3.

The standoff between the LFP and the government stems from a law allowing terrestrial television to broadcast one free-to-view match per week, which the LFP claims loses clubs tens of millions of euros per season. The non-pay TV match is broadcast on Saturday evenings at 10pm, and is usually one of the most glamorous ties of any given match week.

However, a consortium of six clubs - Sevilla, Villarreal, Espanyol, Athletic Bilbao, Zaragoza and Real Sociedad - have challenged the LFP's decision to call industrial action and will make its case in court. The six clubs, and possibly Málaga, which has yet to side with either faction, will ask the court to allow them to honor their fixtures on April 2 and 3.

The same clubs last November refused to sign a new collective agreement over television revenue, which was approved by Primera División's other 13 presidents.

The new deal, which would come into effect in 2014 if a target pot of 800 million euros is reached by clubs' negotiations with broadcasters, still heavily favors Real Madrid and Barcelona; the perennial top two Liga sides currently share 45 percent of some 650 million euros in television revenue.

Under the new arrangement they would split 34 percent between them, with 11 percent destined for the coffers of Atlético Madrid and Valencia. The remainder of the top division's sides would share out 45 percent, with nine percent going to Segunda División's 22 clubs and another one percent reserved to help teams which are relegatd.

The "Group of Six" is campaigning for a more equitable model based on that of the English Premier League or France's Ligue 1.

La Liga is the only major European league without a full pay-per-view regime. Last season, Real and Barça each earned in the region of 150 million euros from television deals, compared to 12 million euros accrued by Tenerife, Xerez, Sporting and Málaga. The former two were relegated, and the latter pair are fighting against the same fate this season. The gap between the haves and have-nots in Europe's other major leagues is considerably less pronounced.

In addition to quashing the weekly free-to-view match, the LFP also wants a larger share of revenue from the games offered by state betting outlets.

If the strike goes ahead, the league program could be extended into June and the Champions League final, scheduled for Saturday May 28, might be affected if Real or Barça reaches it. As it stands, La Liga is scheduled to end the previous weekend.

LFP president José Luis Astiazarán stated last week that he saw "very little chance" of reaching an agreement with the government that would allow week 30 of La Liga to be played, although he added the LFP "remains open to dialogue."