Javier Tebas: "Joint work with the CCT will lead to growth for everyone"

In collaboration with LaLiga, the Commission of Tercera Division Clubs (CCT) held its 1st National Congress today, Saturday, attended by representatives of Segunda Division B and Tercera Division clubs (Spain's third and fourth tiers, respectively). Also present was Javier Tebas, the president of LaLiga, Carlota Castrejana, a consultant with the High Council for Sport, Alfredo Lorenzo, LaLiga's director of integrity and security, and representatives from several other departments of LaLiga. 

Javier Tebas, the president of LaLiga, expressed his satisfaction with the agreement between LaLiga and the CCT, which have been working together for a year for the good of non-professional football: "The work should have been done a long time ago. We need to continue with this educational process, which will undoubtedly lead to growth for everyone. Professional football owes a historical debt to non-professional football." Tebas underscored the evolution and development of football and the need to adapt all aspects of it to the present day: "Football is not the same as it was 20 years ago. The entire environment surrounding it is different. But not a single step has been taken by the institutions to adapt non-professional football to that change." 

The president of LaLiga insisted on the need for the existence of the CCT in order to develop non-professional football. "The CCT is going to achieve the objective that we are working towards, although this collaboration should have a third pillar, the RFEF. We are all clubs and LaLiga is working with the CCT due to the inefficacy and inactivity of the RFEF."

Javier Tebas also highlighted the support which LaLiga provides to women's football, which will be stepped up further next season: "The first thing we have done is to give a 14-week educational course. Furthermore, 0.5% of the income from the centralised sale of television rights will go towards paying for social security for women's football and a large proportion of that of the Segunda Division B. This will be done transparently. If fraudulent or illegal practices come to light, the club involved will have to return all of the money and will receive nothing for five years." 

Finally, Tebas insisted that, in his view, one of the greatest problems faced by football in the present day is match-fixing: "If the results of the sport are predetermined, education is useless. The greatest threat to football is it not being clean. It would be the end of football. This scourge is even more prevalent in non-professional football and we have informed the RFEF, but they have responded by doing nothing."

In addition to LaLiga's president, experts on compliance and legal affairs from the organisation also took part in the congress. Raul Gomez, LaLiga's compliance consultant, stressed that "these types of events are necessary so that everyone becomes more aware of the need for change in order to comply with all legal aspects." Meanwhile, Miguel G. Caba, LaLiga's head of internal consulting, and Luis Gil, the manager of sports institutions, underscored the importance of starting a new era in Spanish football with the centralised sale of television rights, which includes a share for non-professional football. 

The final address was given by Alfredo Lorenzo, LaLiga's director of integrity and security, who continued in the same vein as Javier Tebas by encouraging clubs to report any cases of match-fixing: "When there is reason to do so, the decision to report it must be taken. Reports are confidential. You have this channel at your disposal." In relation to illegal betting, the director said that "a bookmaker needs data in real time and gets it by sending someone to the game. We need to locate these people, either so that they don't get all of the information on games or so that they purchase it."