La Liga postpones Madrid and Barcelona matches due to World Cup

The Spanish La Liga announced the postponement of the Real Madrid and Barcelona matches in the first round of La Liga for the 2026-2027 season.

The league decided to postpone the matches of Real Madrid against Real Sociedad and Barcelona against Athletic Bilbao due to the participation of a large number of players from both teams in the 2026 World Cup semi-finals, raising questions about the impact of international sports decisions on local tournament schedules.

The first round matches will begin on August 15 with the Deportivo Alavés vs Getafe match, while Real Madrid will face Real Sociedad on August 26, and Barcelona will play Athletic Bilbao the following day, meaning the two teams' season start is delayed by an additional two weeks.

La Liga president Javier Tebas said the league has put in place a plan that ensures players get three weeks of rest after the World Cup and another three weeks to prepare for the new season, according to the collective agreement.

We conducted a study, and it is easy to split the first round so that six matches are held on schedule, while three or four other matches are played midweek, giving everyone a full 21 days of off.

The league did not clarify the details of the costs incurred by the postponement, or how to compensate clubs affected by the schedule changes, especially regarding television broadcast contracts and attendance.