LALIGA North America and Panini America have extended their regional partnership for multiple years, reinforcing their strategy to grow the Spanish football league’s presence in the United States through gaming, collectibles and grassroots football.
The agreement sees Panini America continue as the title sponsor of the LALIGA North America U.S. Gaming Challenge presented by Panini. The collaboration, established in its current regional form in 2023, will also focus on youth engagement and fan-facing initiatives, including ElPartidazo and the LALIGA Futures U-12 tournament.
Launched in 2021, the U.S. Gaming Challenge enables fans and amateur gamers to compete virtually using EA SPORTS FC, with opportunities to challenge football personalities, win Panini collectibles and prizes, and experience LALIGA matches in Spain.
The 2026 edition featured four online qualifying tournaments, with eight finalists progressing to the championship stage. Four winners advanced to the Grand Championship Final in Charlotte, North Carolina. The competition generated more than 40 million impressions and 5.2 million video views, underlining the potential of interactive formats to extend the league’s reach beyond traditional matchday audiences.
Nicolás García Hemme, LALIGA North America Managing Director, said, “Panini America has been a valued partner of LALIGA North America as we continue to work in collaboration to engage soccer’s young, diverse, multicultural audiences through collectibles, gaming and soccer. Our audiences, especially younger demographics, aren’t passive viewers who only tune in on matchdays—they prefer and expect engaging, hands-on experiences, which is exactly what the U.S. Gaming Challenge provides.”
Jason Howarth, Senior Vice President of Marketing and Athlete Relations at Panini America, added, “We are excited to continue our relationship with LALIGA North America for the U.S. Gaming Challenge as well as enter into new grassroots initiatives like LALIGA Futures to continue to grow LALIGA in the U.S. The LALIGA U.S. Gaming Challenge blends gaming, soccer and collectibles the way so many people are now engaged in sport; we look forward to continuing to find new ways to evolve the program.”
The extension comes as LALIGA continues to develop its commercial portfolio. Recent agreements and extensions involving brands such as Luckia, Google, Duracell and Toobit span fan engagement, digital rights protection, branded content and regional commercial partnerships. Together, these collaborations reflect the league’s broader efforts to diversify its commercial relationships and strengthen its international reach.
On the pitch, FC Barcelona lead the 2026–27 LALIGA standings with 24 points from eight matches, maintaining a six-point advantage over fourth-placed Real Madrid, who have collected 18 points. Atlético de Madrid and Real Betis occupy second and third place with 19 points apiece.
The upcoming El Clásico on October 25 at Spotify Camp Nou is among the key fixtures to watch. Barcelona will host Real Madrid in a Matchday 10 encounter that could have significant implications for the early title race. Barcelona first face Real Betis, while Real Madrid prepare to meet Sevilla before the high-profile showdown.
By combining gaming, trading cards and grassroots football with its expanding commercial portfolio, LALIGA is seeking to turn growing interest in soccer into sustained fan engagement across the United States.
