When La Liga kicks off on Friday, some of Spain's more modest clubs "will have even greater incentive to fight for their top-flight status thanks to a new framework for the collective and more lucrative sale" of TV rights, according to Iain Rogers of REUTERS. Previously, La Liga teams had been "negotiating individual deals with broadcasters, a system that allowed heavyweights Real Madrid and Barcelona to hoover up roughly half the available TV cash." That is "starting to change thanks to a government decree passed earlier this year." Although the law "is not due to take effect" until the '16-17 season, the Spanish Football League (LFP) has already organized the joint sale of rights for '15-16 that will yield at least $1.1B. Real and Barcelona will "continue to earn roughly the same," but Oviedo University professor of economics Placido Rodriguez said that the effect on lesser clubs "will be dramatic." The former Sporting Gijon chair said, "For the small La Liga teams the government decree is a blessing from on high." A joint study by the Center for Sport Business Management at the University of Navarra and consulting firm Grant Thornton published last month suggested clubs like Las Palmas, Gijon and Real Betis, which were all promoted to La Liga last season, as well as Rayo Vallecano, Eibar and Malaga "will earn far more." Las Palmas and Gijon will reap as much as €20M ($22.4M), increases of 574% and 569%, respectively, while Betis will boost its TV income by 136% to as much as €25M (28M) (REUTERS, 8/20).
