Spain's government will approve a royal decree-law on Tuesday to permanently include four Liga F matches in football pool tickets. The step aims to boost revenue for women's clubs and raise the tournament's profile. The text will need Congress approval in coming weeks.
Spain's Council of Ministers will greenlight a royal decree-law on Tuesday, May 5, 2026, to permanently include four Liga F matches in football pool tickets, as confirmed by EL PAÍS. The Consejo Superior de Deportes (CSD) has worked on this for over a year, near the season's end with three rounds left.
Liga F, Spain's sole professional women's league dominated by Barcelona —its seventh straight title in April—, turned professional in 2022-2023. The pool, eight decades old and previously featuring 15 top men's division matches, raised 160.62 million euros in 2023, with 41 million in taxes per Sociedad Estatal de Loterías y Apuestas del Estado (SELAE). 45.5% of gaming taxes will go to the Liga Nacional de Fútbol Profesional and Liga F; sources say 15% to the women's league, about 6.15 million in 2023.
Backed by the 2022 sports law promoting equality, the move will spotlight a league with average attendance of 1,400 and minimum player salary of 23,500 euros yearly. “After so many years it was about time Liga F matches were included in the pool,” says María José López, legal director of Asociación de Futbolistas Españoles (AFE). Patronal CEO Pablo Vilches notes it will enhance visibility by reaching new audiences.
Permanent inclusion follows sporadic appearances since 2017 and prior CSD subsidies totaling 40 million euros since 2022 for infrastructure. Spain, a women's soccer powerhouse with its world champion national team, now integrates Liga F regularly into the 1946-popularized betting game.
