J-League and LaLiga to work together to develop football in Spain and Japan

As part of its drive for excellence and international expansion, LaLiga has signed a collaboration agreement with the J-League in Tokyo, with the aim of fostering the sustainable growth of football in Spain and Japan. This partnership will see the two institutions share information and collaborate in a range of areas to further their development.

J-League chairman Mitsuru Murai and his LaLiga counterpart, Javier Tebas, presented the agreement to the media and outlined the key features of the partnership. SD Eibar's Japanese player Takashi Inui also attended the event.

The LaLiga president noted that this agreement "will enable the two institutions to share experience and knowledge. The J. League has a lot to teach us." Tebas went on to stress that "partnering with the J. League means a lot to LaLiga. The Japanese league is a standard-bearer and this is a strategic agreement for us." Mr Murai, meanwhile, highlighted the J. League's need to improve in regard to youth development, an area in which Spanish football is a shining example: "In Spain, more than half of the players in every squad are academy products. Japan has to learn from the way LaLiga nurtures the youth system so effectively."

This memorandum of understanding (MoU) provides for the staging of workshops and conferences on strategic matters on which LaLiga has established itself as a leading authority. These range from management to marketing, financial control, administration and stadium security, to name a few. The institutions will also continue to explore the new challenges facing the football world and the new roles that these will necessitate at clubs.

One of the most important aspects of the agreement is the organisations' commitment to fighting piracy hand in hand. On this note, they will work together to locate and stamp out illegal content online to protect the two leagues' broadcasting assets.

Another key area covered concerns training and development in the women's game, in which the Japanese national team have enjoyed great success, including winning the 2011 FIFA Women's World Cup and finishing second at the 2015 tournament. The MoU also leaves open the possibility of academies being set up for budding footballers in Japan and Spain.

This MoU with the J. League is the first that LaLiga has signed with an Asian football institution. It is a further example of the ongoing internationalisation strategy under which LaLiga also has agreements in place with Honduras's LNFP, Colombia's Dimayor, Bolivia's LFPB, Costa Rica's UNAFUT, El Salvador's LMF, Kenya's KPL, Nigeria's NPFL, South Africa's SAFA and Jordan's JFA.