SPAIN Law and Practice Contributed by: Joaquín Jofre Fernández-Abascal, Jofre Sports Law
EU athletes Under the principle of free movement of labour, ath - letes from EU member states are treated as domestic players. There are no legal limits on the number of EU athletes a Spanish club can sign or field. Non-EU athletes Sports governing bodies have the power to impose quotas on players from outside the EU. Neverthe - less, there are those that allow athletes from African, Caribbean and Pacific countries to be exempt from non-EU quotas due to the Cotonou Agreement (and its 2024–2026 successors), which grants them equal treatment in labour conditions once they are legally employed in Spain. National team obligations Under Law 39/2022, any athlete with Spanish nation - ality is legally obliged to participate in the national team if called upon; refusal is considered a very seri - ous offence. Visa and Residency Requirements Professional athletes from non-EU/EEA/Swiss regions must obtain specific authorisations to live and work in Spain. Professional athlete residence permit This specialised permit allows athletes and coaches to reside and work legally. Key requirements include: • employment contract – a signed contract with an authorised sports entity specifying salary and dura - tion; • criminal record – a clean record certificate from the athlete’s home country for the last five years; and • process – the hiring organisation initiates the pro - cess at the Foreigners Office in Spain, and once approved the athlete must apply for the visa at a Spanish consulate in their home country. 8. Women’s Sport 8.1 Development and Growth of Women’s Sport Women’s sport in Spain has transitioned from a devel - oping niche to a professionalised, commercially sig -
nificant movement, catalysed by the official profes - sionalisation of Liga F (the women’s football league) in 2022. Recent Trends and Professionalisation Spanish sports are increasingly separating women’s commercial assets from men’s. LaLiga acts as the exclusive commercial agent for Liga F, securing dedi - cated deals such as the EUR42 million minimum guar - antee over five years for marketing assets. Professional status Beyond football, basketball and other disciplines have seen a surge in federated licences; in 2023, female sports licences in Spain surpassed one million for the first time, representing 25% of all national sports licences. Notable statistics (2024–2025 season) The 2024/2025 season marked a historic peak for women’s football in Spain. • Viewership: total TV audiences for Liga F exceeded 6.7 million viewers, a staggering 90% increase from the previous campaign. • Attendance: match attendance grew by 7% year- on-year and has risen 120% since the pre-profes - sional 2021/22 era. The game between FC Barce - lona and Real Madrid alone attracted over 540,000 television viewers. Major Commercial and Media Deals Title sponsorship Liga F signed a major deal with the energy company Moeve for the 2024/25 season, which includes the creation of a technical office for environmental sus - tainability. Media rights DAZN holds the global rights for Liga F through the 2026/27 season in a deal valued at approximately EUR35 million. Additionally, RTVE (the Spanish pub - lic broadcaster) secured free-to-air rights for the 2026 World Cup in a deal worth roughly EUR55 million. Long-term support Iberdrola, a pioneer in Spanish women’s sport, renewed its partnership with the RFEF through 2030,
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