A rare exception: why will Real Madrid and Barcelona miss the opening of La Liga? | Goal.com
The Spanish La Liga fixtures for the 2026-2027 season begin tomorrow, Saturday, but fans will not see Real Madrid and Barcelona in the opening round after both clubs' matches were postponed. So what is the secret?
Real Madrid's clash with Real Sociedad and Barcelona's meeting with Athletic Bilbao still count officially within the first round, but they will be played later in the month. It's an exceptional measure adopted by Spanish football authorities to give the clubs hit hardest by the 2026 World Cup extra time to recover their players and prepare them.
The Spanish Football Federation brought in a special rule allowing clubs with players in the semi-final or final of the World Cup to postpone their first-round match to 25, 26 or 27 August.
Why? Because the season's schedule is so tight. The World Cup ended barely any time before the date set for the start of La Liga.
Both Real Madrid and Barcelona met the conditions, with each side sending a large number of players deep into the tournament's final stages alongside their national teams.
Real Madrid's match against Real Sociedad has been moved to Wednesday 26 August at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Here's the irony: this won't be Real Madrid's first appearance in La Liga under Jose Mourinho. The team begin their campaign four days earlier, visiting Espanyol on 22 August in a second-round fixture.
Real Madrid will therefore play their second-round match before officially playing their first, an unusual scenario forced on them by the schedule adjustments.
Barcelona find themselves in exactly the same position. Their first-round match against Athletic Bilbao has been pushed back to Thursday 27 August at the Spotify Camp Nou.
The Catalan side, title holders under Hansi Flick, will kick off the season before that. They face Elche away from home on 23 August in the second-round programme.
Four days later, Barcelona return to their own ground for the postponed clash with Athletic Bilbao. They will have effectively started their season before completing their task in the opening round.
La Liga's opening round will therefore stretch out exceptionally, running from tomorrow, the date of Deportivo Alaves against Getafe, until 27 August. That's nearly two weeks before all its matches are done.
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