Real Madrid Fails to Postpone the Start of La Liga
Real Madrid’s request to postpone the first La Liga match of the season has been rejected due to their participation in the Club World Cup. A judge from the Spanish football federation has made this decision, leaving the team without the possibility of changing the date of their league debut.
The merengue team played their last match in the tournament on Wednesday, July 9, where they were defeated 4-0 by Paris Saint-Germain in the semi-final held at the MetLife Stadium in New Jersey.
La Liga scheduled the first match of the 2025-26 season, against Osasuna at the Santiago Bernabéu, for Tuesday, August 19th at 21:00 local time, 41 days later.
Real Madrid argued that this date represented “a violation of the minimum rest and preparation period” established in the collective agreement that governs professional football in Spain.
In a ruling issued on Thursday, RFEF judge José Alberto Peláez stated that he dismissed Madrid’s request to postpone the match to a later date.
The judge pointed out that the Madrid players began their rest period on July 11 and, therefore, have enjoyed the 21 uninterrupted days of rest established in the collective agreement.
The regulations do not mention an additional minimum of 21 days for physical and tactical preparation, as suggested by Madrid and the players’ union AFE.
Real Madrid has 48 hours to appeal the decision.
Meanwhile, their rivals, Barcelona, will start their league season as visitors against Mallorca on Saturday, August 16, while Atletico Madrid will visit Espanyol on Sunday, August 17.
