LaLiga celebrates the first anniversary of the approval of Royal Decree-Law

On 1 May 2015, Spain's Official State Gazette (Boletin Oficial del Estado) published Royal Decree-Law 5/2015, dated 30 April, on urgent measures regarding the marketing of audiovisual rights for professional football competitions. 

To mark the first anniversary of this landmark occasion, over the last week the presidents and board members of LaLiga's clubs and public limited sports companies have highlighted the importance of this government measure. For his part, Miguel Cardenal, the president of the High Council for Sport (CSD), stated that, "Now our football scene is solvent and has strong structures in place, so it can help the country's other sports, which was the target we set ourselves four years ago. Revenues are high enough to cover top sportspeople's social security, to keep consolidating football's finances and being competitive, and to remain at the forefront in Europe." Cardenal went on to describe the legislation as "the best reform in Spanish professional football history." 

In the view of Alex Aranzabal, the president of SD Eibar, "Centralised sales mean improving the quality of the product, getting better sales terms and putting LaLiga out there on the world market, competing with the Premier League." Similarly, Diego Garcia, the new president of Elche CF, explained that the way LaLiga's audiovisual rights are managed "affects all the clubs, the bigger and more modest ones alike, and we're very excited about continuing to grow." 

Meanwhile, RCD Mallorca CEO Maheta Molango outlined how the decree has changed the name of the game for foreign investors: "For a serious investor who wants to make a sound investment, it's important to come to a country where financial fair play exists and there is a sustainable project based on television revenues. We are gaining ground on the Premier League, which has to be our prime goal." 

Angel Torres, the Getafe CF president, thanked "the government, the CSD and Javier Tebas, who was determined to make this happen." He added that the complexion of Spanish football has changed now and that, "within a couple of years, as well as being the best league in the world in sporting terms, that will also be the case financially speaking."