La Liga football returns to British TV

The evolution of Spanish football television coverage continues with the new Disney+ deal to bring the showcase La Liga match to audiences in the UK and Ireland.

I'm honoured to be part of a team that delivers the "primetime" Saturday night Spanish game to a global audience. To be honest, I'm counting down the hours.

It's quite a contrast to the first exportation of Spanish football to an international audience. When I was a young commentator at Granada TV in the north-west of England, tapes of the previous weekend's Primera Division games were flown into Manchester Airport. We added commentary and recorded the show from George Best's tapas restaurant with Spanish waiters offering fan comment.

Next season, the games will be simulcast live on Disney+ in the UK and ESPN+ in the USA. It's a far cry from the highlights show that introduced Real Madrid and Barcelona to a British audience. It's great news for commentators, viewers and the next generation of footballers.

Trent Alexander-Arnold revealed how he dreamed of one day playing for Real Madrid after watching them on television in his formative days. Jude Bellingham admitted that he was a devotee of La Liga in his youth. Marcus Rashford's "people" have spent months making it known that his ambition was to play for Barcelona.

All three England internationals are from an age when they could watch Sky Sports' live La Liga matches. Their parents would allow them to sit and watch Figo, Ronaldo, Messi and Beckham before bedtime. A whole generation was raised on the Revista de La Liga highlights show on Sky Sports.

It was disappointing for those of us who worked on the shows when Sky dropped the coverage in 2018. It has been difficult to pin down since then, with rights moving from the Eleven streaming service to La Liga TV to Viaplay, becoming Premier Sports, with ITV4 airing a handful of matches.

Over in the United States and Canada, La Liga is thriving after a deal was done to bring blanket coverage of Spanish football to an enthusiastic audience on the ESPN platforms. I still can't believe that I'm on an email trail with Mario Kempes, Hugo Sánchez, Steve McManaman, Luis García and Kasey Keller. The legends Kempes and Sánchez broadcast on the Spanish-speaking ESPN-Deportes channel.

I've always maintained that there's nothing quite like the late game on Saturday night from Spain. Kick-off at 9.30pm local, the stadiums are full and buzzing. It's a unique experience and there's no other top-class football at that time.

In the UK, they'll be keen to see Alexander-Arnold, Rashford and Bellingham (when he's back) - but also the finest homegrown talent too. Lamine Yamal is the best player in the world for me and his Barcelona side are the most entertaining in the league; Real Madrid live up to the name of footballing royalty; Atlético de Madrid live up to the tag of disruptors; Athletic Bilbao are unique; - and many teams are adopted by fans around the globe.

I truly can't wait for the season to start when we deliver La Liga to a worldwide audience. It's the most entertainingly undisciplined league in the world. Bring it on!