Governance of La Liga

     La Liga is is the common name for the Primera Division within La Liga Nacional de Futbol Profesional.  As the top division under the Spanish football league system, La Liga creates passion and emotion for football fans throughout Spain.  La Liga has twenty participating teams which are able to play up or down through the internal division system.  The top two teams of the division B will rise to then play in the division A, while the third team is decided on a playoff game.  Conversely, the three worst teams in division A drop down to B.  This depends solely on the competitive win-loss record at the end of each season.  Due to this oscillating division participants list, 59 different teams have played within La Liga.  This alone creates an elite aura about the league contributing to its widespread popularity and competitiveness of the teams.  Teams such as Real Madrid and Barcelona are continually successful within the system of La Liga, ever increasing the popularity around the globe.
     Seasons consist of a double round robin schedule where each team plays competitors both home and away.  This gives credibility to teams that win both at home and on the road.  The season lasts from September to June, while each team plays a total of 38 games.  This system that helps dominant teams stay in La Liga can be quickly questioned as certain teams are able to buy out the best players, shutting out competition from smaller clubs and markets.  Is this competitively moral?  Should each team have a salary cap in which they must operate under?  With the current governance, the wonderful divisional system on La Liga is tarnished by the uncompetitive lack of fairness between team expenditures.  How long will the current league set up last if the ever increasing gap between clubs becomes to big?  If one thing helps back up a change, it is the grotesque salaries that players make in which lower tier clubs cannot compete.

Sources:  http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/La_Liga#Competition_format ; http://www.onbeingablacklawyer.com/wordpress/wp-content/uploads/2009/01/gavel.jpg

Sponsorship News

     After 5 games played, Barcelona sits second in the table and their bitter rivals Real Madrid tied for fifth.  Given their resources, this could be considered a slow start as both teams have seen some disappointing results.  However, this past week both seemed to show their true form and flex their muscle as both outplayed their opponents with lopsided scores.  Barcelona thrashed a seemingly strong Athletico Madrid 5-0, while Madrid topped newly promoted Rayo Vallecano 6-2.  Behind these scores, the disparity between the top teams and bottom teams is becoming more and more evident.
     Over the weekend, Barcelona's socios approved the deal with Qatar Sports Investment, which will see Barcelona receive 171 million euros in the next five years.  Although a controversial source of revenue, the socios approved the deal with a majority as  697 responded yes, while only 76 responded no.  When compared with other teams around La Liga, excluding Real Madrid, this sponsorship dwarfs all others.  At the beginning of the season several teams lacked shirt sponsors, and even to this point both Barcelona's and Real Madrid's recent opponents, Athletico Madrid and Rayo Vallecano, still lack kit sponsors.  If this trend remains we will only see the gap between the "top two" and the rest of La Liga grow.  For the sake of the league, both competitively and financially, these remaining teams need to find shirt sponsors.  However, should teams like Athletico Madrid settle with sponsorship deals that are under par or should they risk not getting any sponsor waiting for one that meets their financial demand?  This fine line can see these teams lose millions in sponsors which only expands the margin between the top two and the rest of the league.

Sources:  http://www.totalbarca.com/2011/news/members-accept-the-qatar-sports-investment-deal/ ; http://karllusbec.files.wordpress.com/2011/01/barca-qatar-foundation.jpg?w=378