Real Madrid Secures Semi-Finalist, La Liga Start Postponed

The first round of La Liga, set to kick off on August 15, will begin with at least one postponed match – the fixture between Real Madrid and Real Sociedad. This is because Real Madrid is guaranteed to have at least one player in the World Cup semi-finals. It's certain that either Brahim Díaz (Morocco) or Kylian Mbappé, Aurélien Tchouaméni, and Ibrahima Konaté (France) will reach the tournament's final stages. La Liga's priority is to ensure the mandatory three weeks of rest for professional players.

The official calendar, approved this week, states that a postponement requires "the presence of a significant number of players in a World Cup semi-final or final." However, La Liga president Javier Tebas assured back in June that even if only one player is in such a situation, their team's match would be postponed.

"On the opening day of the first round, teams that have had players – we'll see the exact number – in the semi-finals or finals of these competitions, in this case the World Cup, will play their matches in the last week of the month. The remaining teams will play as scheduled," Tebas stated at the time.

"Statistically, it's clear that Real Madrid and Barcelona are unlikely to play on the weekend of August 16. Athletic also has many players with Spain, and we hope they reach at least the semi-final or final. But other clubs can start. At least 6-7 matches will be played that weekend," he added.

The Real Madrid – Real Sociedad match has already been confirmed as moved to the end of the month, August 26-27. The fixtures Barcelona – Athletic, Atlético – Malaga, and Celta – Osasuna are also in question, especially if Spain qualifies for the semi-finals. The other side of the bracket also features many La Liga players competing for Brazil (Real Madrid and Barcelona), England (Real Madrid and Barcelona), Argentina (Atlético), and Norway (Atlético).

Nevertheless, the other matches of the round will proceed as planned. "There's no point in teams whose players were eliminated in the group stage not starting on August 14, because that way a rule will be upheld, which we hope will become established: 21 days of vacation and 21 days of pre-season training for those teams with those players," Tebas concluded.