Real Madrid, Atletico captains demand delayed start to La Liga due to Club World Cup involvement | OneFootball

Two weeks after the 2024/25 campaign came to an end, La Liga announced earlier today that the 2025/26 season will kick off on the weekend of August 17.

It would mean close to a ten-week break between the end of the current season and the start of the new one.

However, two teams – Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid – will have a much shorter break as they are involved in the FIFA Club World Cup set to begin next week in the USA.

Real, Atletico captains demand delayed start

As such, journalist Rodra now reports that the captains of Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid have demanded that the new La Liga season starts on the weekend of August 24th if either team makes it to the final phase of FIFA Club World Cup.

Both teams have the full backing of the AFE (Spanish Footballers’ Association) which has has insisted on the condition that the first matchday for Real and Atletico get postponed in case of their prolonged run in the Club World Cup.

Real Madrid and Atletico will be involved in the Club World Cup. (Photo by Miguel Schincariol/Getty Images)

The players’ association demands that players receive the mandatory 21 days of vacation, along with a minimum of three weeks of pre-season training.

This has been negotiated directly with Dani Carvajal and Koke, captains of Real Madrid and Atletico, respectively.

Both players have conveyed to La Liga their preference to delay the league start if their clubs reach the final rounds of the tournament, in order to guarantee minimum preparation time.

However, postponing matches at the start of the season presents a logistical issue: there are very few open dates to make them up.

Everything will depend on a meeting set to be held with La Liga. More details are awaited on the matter.