ElClasico: La Liga’s world-class event

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The crowd roars as the ball comes to Lionel Messi, he takes a shot at goal, but it’s blocked by a defender. Soon after Gareth Bale hits the back of the net, but the score is overturned by VAR. By the time the final whistle blows neither team has been able to score and 93,246 passionate football fans walk away without a winner being decided. The last time fierce rivals Barcelona and Real Madrid faced off at Camp Nou was in 2019 – however this weekend’s ElClasico will take on a very different look.

While there will be no fans at the first ElClasico since the COVID-19 pandemic, La Liga is still striving to provide the best entertainment experience possible for its fans.

The first La Liga ElClasico was played in 1928 and the match between Barcelona and Real Madrid has grown to become one the of biggest rivalries in world sport.

The game itself features some of the best players in the world including Lionel Messi, Sergio Ramos, Gerad Pique, Karim Benzema, Luka Modric and Antoine Griezmann.

Then there is the work being done off the field by La Liga to promote the match internationally and provide the best coverage possible.

Red carpets bearing the competing clubs’ logos and an ElClasico logo have been placed at landmarks all over the globe. In Australia, a red carpet has been placed in the vicinity of the Sydney Opera House.

The other red carpets are located in the United States, United Kingdom, India, Senegal, Colombia and Tajikistan.

More than 100 ElClasico events have also been organised across the world. This includes watch parties in Vietnam, Dubai, South Africa, Nigeria and Kenya while a number of drive-in cinemas will be showing the match in Mexico, Colombia, Ecuador and Argentina.

Digital events have been planned for counties where COVID-19 restrictions are in place.

La Liga said that ElClasico provides entertainment like no other event.

“Though governmental health restrictions mean fans won’t be in the Camp Nou stands for this first ever ElClasico behind closed doors, LaLiga has ensured that fans around the world will still be able to come together for the greatest show in club football,” La Liga said in a media release.

“Everything is in place for the return of ElClasico, the best footballers in the world and the best fan experience possible.”

ElClasico is the most-watched club game in football with the upcoming match expected to reach around 650 million fans worldwide.

La Liga ambassador and former Real Madrid captain Fernando Hierro spoke of the game’s worldwide appeal at the La Liga Ambassadors Gala on Tuesday.

“Earlier, the Real Madrid-Barcelona matches had more domestic and national interest. But it started growing and became more international. It now attracts global interest, and it will be widely viewed,” Hierro said.

A series of technological innovations for the broadcast of this year’s La Liga ensure that the coverage of the match is of the highest standard. The innovations include 360 degree replay technology, a virtualised visual crowd, crowd noise and the use of drones to provide new camera angles.

The league had already been working on implementing some of these technologies but expanded to include the virtual crowd and crowd noise due to the COVID-19 pandemic.

La Liga’s head of audio-visual programming and production Roger Brosel said that the league wanted to offer the best audio-visual show for its fans.

“We have been working for four years now, trying to be innovative and having the aerial cameras and all the 360 replay technology, this year is just another step forward,” he said.

“We wanted to introduce these technological innovations related to virtual … to allow the fans to concentrate on the match and the way that things were being played without the negative impact caused by an empty stadium.”

“From our department what we are trying to do is be more attractive for people all around the world.”

For the 2020/21 La Liga season the new graphics and stats are powered by artificial intelligence and augmented reality.

La Liga uses its Media Coach platform to integrate data into the broadcast. The platform was originally only used by technical staff and coaches but is now also used to show tracking, performance, and match data during the broadcast.

The AR graphics and statistics appear on the ground during the broadcast to add to the match experience.

Roger Brosels also said that there had to be a balance between using data and graphics and letting viewers enjoy the match.

“Data is very interesting, and it contributes something but too much live data can distract viewers, or it can mean that the match experience isn’t as good.”

“The producing team are very sensitive to this issue, they introduce the data when it contributes something, adds something extra to the match storytelling.”

La Liga is also extending the ElClasico experience to the internet and social media. The league’s social media channels will be posting content in the build up to kick-off. An online fan zone will also be launched where fans will be able to win replica shirts, while La Liga’s website will also have an ElClasico section.

The teams are evenly matched heading into this weekend’s game, Real Madrid has 73 ElClasico wins while Barcelona trails on 72 wins – there have also been 35 draws.

ElClasico is being broadcast live in Australia on beIN Sports, the match is scheduled to be played this Sunday at 1am (AEDT).

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Winter Futsal League Returns with New Cup Competition

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Women's Winter Futsal League Champions. Image Credit: Football NSW

Football NSW Futsal’s Winter Futsal League (WFL) is back for its seventh season, with 12 men’s clubs and six women’s clubs set to compete across the winter off-season.

The Men’s Division kicks off on Sunday 15 March at Valentine Sports Park and affiliate venue The Centre Dural, welcoming back familiar sides including Dural Warriors, Sydney Allstars and Phoenix Futsal alongside new and returning entrants Eastern Suburbs Hakoah, Mascot Vipers and Sydney Futsal. The Women’s Division follows on 11 April, featuring six clubs including newcomers Dural Warriors and East Coast Bulls. Both competitions will conclude with a finals series in July.

Seven Iranian Footballers granted asylum in Australia after Anthem Protest

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The Iranian Women's Footballer Team Anthem Protest March 8 against the Phillipines. Image Credit: Dave Hunt/AAP Image via AP

Seven members of Iran’s women’s football team have been granted humanitarian visas in Australia, after a dramatic 48-hour operation that saw players slip away from government minders, protesters block team buses, and a late-night diplomatic resolution.

The saga began on March 2, when five players declined to sing the Iranian national anthem before their opening Women’s Asian Cup match against South Korea on the Gold Coast. The moment, seen by millions, prompted furious condemnation on Iranian state television, where conservative commentator Mohammad Reza Shahbazi labelled the players “wartime traitors” and called for them to be “dealt with more harshly.”

“This is no longer some symbolic protest or demonstration,” Shahbazi said on air. “In wartime conditions, going there and refusing to sing the national anthem is the height of shamelessness and betrayal.”

Under Iran’s Islamic Republic penal code, charges of corruption or treason can carry lengthy prison sentences or the death penalty.

A delicate operation

Australian officials had been preparing for what followed for some time. After Iran’s final group match- a 2-0 loss to the Philippines on Sunday night, government representatives were waiting at Robina Stadium on the Gold Coast, signalling to the players that help was available.

A police officer had been stationed inside the team’s hotel, working to create what Home Affairs Minister Tony Burke later described as “the maximum amount of opportunities” for players to make contact. Reports from inside the hotel suggested the women were not permitted to move around unaccompanied and were escorted even to meals.

By Monday morning, it had become clear that five players wanted to stay. The women slipped away from their minders, with Australian Federal Police and Queensland Police there to escort them to a secure location. Shortly after they left, BBC journalists at the hotel witnessed Iranian officials running through the building in an apparent attempt to locate them, but they were unsuccessful.

Burke met the group at approximately 9pm Monday and signed off on their applications for temporary humanitarian visas. By 1:30am Tuesday, the paperwork was complete. In a secure location in Brisbane, the five players, Fatemeh Pasandideh, Zahra Ghanbari, Zahra Sarbali, Atefeh Ramazanzadeh and Mona Hamoudi, broke into a spontaneous chant of “Aussie, Aussie, Aussie.”

Trump calls, the number grows

The story had by then attracted international attention. US President Donald Trump took to his Truth Social platform to demand action, writing that Australia should “give asylum” to the women or “the US will take them.”

Prime Minister Anthony Albanese confirmed he spoke to Trump just before 2am Tuesday. Shortly after, Trump posted again, appearing satisfied: “Five have already been taken care of, and the rest are on their way. Some, however, feel they must go back because they are worried about the safety of their families.”

The number of asylum seekers then continued to rise. As the remaining squad was transferred from the Gold Coast to Sydney Airport ahead of their departure, Burke and Border Force officials pulled each team member aside individually, without Iranian minders present, and offered them a choice. Two more players and a member of the support staff accepted. The total reached seven.

Crowds of Iranian-Australians gathered outside the airport, breaking into cheers as word spread that more players had stayed. A bus carrying the remaining squad had earlier been briefly blocked outside their Gold Coast hotel by protesters lying in the road, some holding signs, others desperately trying to persuade the players visible through the windows to disembark.

“They can’t speak freely because they are threatened,” said Naz Safavi, who had attended all three of Iran’s matches during the tournament. “We are here to show them that we are fully supporting them.”

One changes her mind

The situation shifted again on Wednesday when Burke informed parliament that one of the seven had changed her decision after speaking with departing teammates, who had encouraged her to contact the Iranian embassy.

“As a result of that, it meant the Iranian embassy now knew the location of where everybody was,” Burke said. The remaining asylum seekers were immediately moved to a new secure location.

The six remaining visa holders have been granted temporary humanitarian protection, valid for 12 months and providing a pathway to permanent residency, similar to visas previously issued to Ukrainians, Palestinians and Afghans.

Burke stressed throughout that the process had been entirely voluntary. “We never told anyone it was time to end the meeting,” he said. “If people wanted to stay and keep talking and miss that plane, they had agency to do that as well.”

Iran’s Foreign Ministry urged the players to return home, with spokesperson Esmaeil Baghaei writing on X: “To Iran’s women’s football team: don’t worry- Iran awaits you with open arms.”

The six who stayed have not responded publicly. Burke said they were grateful, and clear about one thing: “They are not political activists. They are athletes who want to be safe.”

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