La Liga thrown into chaos as Spanish FA call for a strike

The climax of La Liga and Copa del Rey final have been thrown into chaos after the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) called an indefinite strike in all domestic competitions from May 16. The strike, called just half-an-hour before Barcelona's Champions League clash with Bayern Munich on Wednesday night, comes as a result of the RFEF's dissatisfaction with the recent royal decree which will centralise broadcasting rights in La Liga. If it goes ahead, the last two match days in La Liga and the Copa del Rey final will be hit but all parties will hope to find a resolution before then owing to the packed fixture schedule. The RFEF say the action is not down to the new financial benefits for professional clubs, but more down to how it impacts on amateur football and the "lack of respect" that has been shown to them during the process. "Problems with amateur football have not been resolved and there were no efforts made by the Minister of Education, Culture and Sports to find a solution during the last three months," an RFEF statement reads. "Royal Decree-Law 5/2015, of April 30, has received the express support of the RFEF repeatedly. We want to make clear that our most important complaints didn't affect the economic benefits for the clubs, the league, or football in general. "Unlike other organisations, the RFEF never received the draft of the law, as we had asked, with the intention of offering contributions so as to improve it. Only at the last moment did they offer us partial information on a fraction of the data. "This attitude, together with the contents of the law, have been considered by the board of directors of the RFEF as a lack of respect and consideration towards the governing body of the whole of Spanish football, which has been ignored and negated by the government of Spain." If the strike goes ahead La Liga matches will be played this weekend but the final two rounds of La Liga will be hit, as well as the Copa del Rey final between Athletic Bilbao and Barcelona. The fact that Barcelona or Real Madrid could be involved in the Champions League final will also be impacted upon, while the Copa America starts just a week after that.