"That began to change a after a long-running anti-trust lawsuit brought by Relevent, a marketing and event promotion company founded by Miami Dolphins owner Stephen Ross, was settled with FIFA and, later, the U.S. Soccer Federation (USSF). The settlement effectively opens the door to sports leagues wishing to play abroad. One of the last hurdles to fall was UEFA, the governing body of football in Europe, where opposition is most strident."
"When the NFL goes to São Paulo or Dublin or London, they're not pushing their product on somebody else's turf, for starters. Whatever organized football exists in those territories is light years away from what the NFL offers. That's not the case here. MLS and Australia's A-League may not be on par with LaLiga or Serie A, but they are fully fledged, professional competitions. And unlike the NFL, there's a single, pyramid-based ecosystem, governed by FIFA at the top."
Villarreal will play Barcelona in Miami on Dec. 20, and AC Milan will face Como in Perth in February, marking the first regular-season European league matches on foreign soil. A long political and legal struggle culminated in settlements between Relevent, FIFA and the U.S. Soccer Federation that removed prior prohibitions on playing league fixtures abroad. UEFA's opposition was one of the last hurdles to fall. The situation differs from other U.S. sports touring overseas because domestic soccer leagues like MLS and the A-League are established professional competitions within a FIFA-governed pyramid. Multiple national associations and confederations had to sign off for the fixtures to proceed.
Read at ESPN.com
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