UEFA reluctantly approves La Liga, Serie A requests to play outside their home countries

UEFA said Monday that it reluctantly approved requests for a Spanish LaLiga match between Villarreal and Barcelona and an Italian Serie A clash between Milan and Como to be played abroad.

The football governing body said in a statement that the Executive Committee has reluctantly taken the decision to approve, on an exceptional basis, the two requests referred to it.

UEFA President Aleksander Ceferin stressed that all league clashes should be played on home soil, noting that "anything else would disenfranchise loyal match-going fans and potentially introduce distortive elements in competitions."

"While it is regrettable to have to let these two games go ahead, this decision is exceptional and shall not be seen as setting a precedent," he added.

UEFA gave the green light to LaLiga and Serie A for the one-off matches abroad, saying the decision was forced because the relevant FIFA regulatory framework was not clear enough to prevent it.

The Villarreal-Barcelona match will be held in Miami in the US, likely in December, while the clash between Milan and Como will take place in Perth, Australia in February.