The Kings League is coming to the United States: Inside Gerard Pique's plans for the league's future
PARIS -- The Kings League says they're coming to the United States, the only question is when. It has been an intense year for the organizers of the Kings League, the seven-a-side format known for its unconventional rules that was founded by former FC Barcelona defender Gerard Pique in 2022. Since then, the tournament, which first kicked off in Spain, has expanded internationally and this is the direction both Pique and Kings League's CEO Djamel Agaoua are pursuing. After Spain, they expanded to South America with the Americas Kings League, and in the first quarter of 2025 the Kings League launched in four new countries: Italy, France, Germany and Brazil. In the meantime they also organized two editions of the Kings World Club Cup, with the current edition ending June 14 in Paris, one Kings World Cup Nations that took place in Turin in January 2025 and the Queens League.
Now, the mission for both Pique and Agaoua is clear. "The next big thing is launching the Kings League in the United States," they revealed sitting down with CBS Sports.
The Kings World Cup Clubs began on June 1 with the final occurring on June 14, with all of the action airing on CBS Sports Golazo Network and YouTube
What's next: The United StatesThe Kings League has recently announced they will also launch the format in the MENA region (Middle East and North Africa) and while the new leagues are performing above expectations, the eyes of both Pique and Agaoua are now looking in the same direction, the United States. The ideal roadmap is to launch the Kings League ahead of the 2026 World Cup. "It might happen at the beginning of 2026, or maybe before, but the plan is clear. We're looking for the right partnerships, the right venues that can host the games but also strong creators that will own the teams," Pique said.
Neither the former defender nor Agaoua are worried about the business side of the investment in the United States. "We raised around $60 million in 2024 to face the expansion in other countries. We usually spend around $5-6 million per country [when] we launch the league in a new country, but we expect the investment in the USA to be at least four times more. This is because all the marketing operations are more expensive, but also because we need to hire and connect the current work experience of our employees based in Europe with our new resources. It's like comparing the US with Europe, not with just one country. At the same time, the maturity of sport business in the United States is at another level. It won't be an issue. It will be more difficult to find the right people, this is why we are also planning to start with East Coast, it's closer to Barcelona where our headquarters are," Agaoua said.
Choosing the right people is key, but so is deciding which market to enter and that's an aspect of the work of Agaoua, who was appointed as the new CEO in October 2024. For example, the Kings League was launched in countries like Italy, France, Spain and Brazil, but not in places like England. Agaoua explained to why.
"It happened for different reasons, but we're open for the future. First of all we need strong content creators to own the clubs and stream the content on a daily basis. Twitch is an important factor for us, and the Twitch culture in the U.K. is not at the level of other countries. Then, the Premier League is the best league in Europe and while in the other countries the traditional sport is getting less attention, in the UK we don't see a similar trend. And lastly, when they attempted to launch the Super League we saw a big reaction of the fanbases of the clubs involved."
They are taking more time to make that much awaited step in the United States, but this is going to happen. They need more time as the market is bigger than any other country where it's launched, and the approach will also be different compared to the other ones. The only question is when it will be announced and when it will kick off. With the upcoming Club World Cup starting on June 14, and the 2026 World Cup next year, the Kings League is also coming to the United States.
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