La Liga takes Spanish FA to court in attempt to force Miami match

La Liga confirmed on Friday that it has filed a lawsuit with a civil court in Madrid in order to force the Spanish Football Association's (RFEF) approval for a league match to be held in Miami.

The proposed fixture stems from a 15-year partnership between La Liga and media company Relevent, and would see Girona's home clash with Barcelona on Jan. 26, 2019 moved to the United States. The notion has been met with widespread criticism and objections from the RFEF, Spanish players' union, and even Real Madrid, who said the overseas match would harm La Liga's "integrity and equality."

La Liga, however, is undeterred and is determined to showcase its product in the U.S. For the game to leave Spanish shores, La Liga needs approval from the RFEF.

"La Liga has taken a case to court in Madrid and expect a resolution in the coming days or weeks," a spokesperson for the league said, as quoted by BBC Sport's Matt Davis.

Those that run the Spanish top flight believe the RFEF's resolve has loosened since it was agreed that Madrid's Santiago Bernabeu will host the second leg of the Copa Libertadores final on Dec. 9. The highly anticipated decider between Buenos Aires rivals River Plate and Boca Juniors was ruined by violence so, after two postponements last weekend, South American football's governing body CONMEBOL has elected to stage the fixture away from Argentina.

La Liga's campaign won't end there. The division's bigwigs will also require approval from FIFA, U.S. Soccer, and CONCACAF, which oversees football in North America, Central America, and the Caribbean.

It's understood La Liga is prepared to take the case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport to force Girona and Barcelona's meeting in Miami to go ahead.