La Liga is back. The 2025/26 campaign runs from mid-August to late May, with a full calendar and heavyweight clashes spread across the year.
The first El Clásico lands on the Matchday 10 weekend in late October, with the return leg pencilled in for May. These anchor points frame a title race that already looks fierce.
Three promoted sides—Levante, Elche, and Real Oviedo—join 17 household teams. That trio faces a survival fight from day one. The big clubs, meanwhile, must set the tone early in a year where every slip is punished fast.
🆕New faces, Old giants: Xabi Alonso & 40-year-old Santi Cazorla
Real Madrid starts a new era under Xabi Alonso. The former Leverkusen coach has been appointed to lead a squad stacked with speed and star power.
Madrid’s attack blends Kylian Mbappé’s efficiency with Vinícius Júnior’s dribbles and Jude Bellingham’s robotic energy. On paper, that is dynamite. On the grass, Alonso must fit the pieces and keep balance.
Then there is former Arsenal and Villarreal star Santi Cazorla, who will be making a return to the Spanish top flight with the newly promoted side Real Oviedo.
🚌🚏Bus-packing & Crazy Low Blocks are Back (and here to stay):
Expect low blocks. Promoted teams and several mid-table sides will sit deep, crowd the box and dare the giants to cross. It’s sensible. Compact shape, fast breaks and set-pieces are the underdog’s best friends.
As was witnessed in Alonso’s first La Liga game as a Los Blancos manager against Osasuna, Madrid and Barça will face long spells of patience tests, circulating the ball, probing half-spaces, looking for cut-backs and striking hopeful long shots.
For the chasing pack, Atlético Madrid still leans on order and edge, Athletic Club presses with bite, and Real Sociedad remain slick between the lines. Girona’s rotations and Villarreal’s counter threat add variety.
But the theme is clear: deny space, slow the game, and steal points when the moment comes.
🎥VAR Wahala & Referee Headaches:
There are fresh officiating directives this season. Referees have stressed fewer interventions from the booth and a tighter line on dissent, with a “captains only” policy.
Only captains should approach the referee. Goalkeepers face sharper timing on restarts – a goalkeeper holds onto the ball before a goalkick for longer than 8 seconds, and it’s a corner kick to the opposing team.
In short: cleaner communication, fewer surroundings, and quicker restarts. Technology also stays front and centre. VAR and Semi-automated offside remain in use in La Liga, speeding up offside checks and tightening margins.
It won’t end arguments, just like the VAR hasn’t. Really, nothing ever does, and so expect the controversies, especially with La Liga referees who crave attention.
🔴Red cards – 10 v 11s & 9 v 11s:
Five (5) red cards were shown by the end of Matchday 1, two in one game (Mallorca vs Barcelona) in the 25/26 Spanish La Liga season.
With stricter touchlines and tougher thresholds on complaints and tactical fouls, cards will matter even more. Coaches know that one reckless press, a pull on a breaking runner, or a mouthy protest can flip a match.
Squads that keep 11 on the field will bank points; those that boil over will drop them. Expect managers to rotate early when a player is on a booking and under stress.
🪙Ballon d’Or Level Games & Stars:
Spain is loaded with elite talent. Mbappé brings box-office skills and goals for Madrid. Vinícius is already a weekly highlight reel. Bellingham times runs like a No. 9 and passes like a 10.
For Barça, Lamine Yamal is not just a prodigy; he is HIM now. Add Robert Lewandowski’s movement and the new-look wide threats in Rashford and Rody, and you have a champion’s attack that can score in bursts.
These names make the big nights feel like award showcases. El Clásico weekends will be a global cinema again. Madrid derbies will be pure energy. Barça-Atleti is still a chess match with punches.
Even mid-table meetings throw up stars—Nico Williams on the break, Take Kubo between lines, and Isco gliding through midfield.
⁉️What Will Decide the Title?
Three levers will swing the race:
⚠️Discipline: Fewer reds and smarter game management in tight away games.
⛓️Breaking the block: The champions and challengers must create clean shots when teams sit on the penalty spot. Quick switches, third-man runs and cut-backs will be the gold standard.
🪙Ballon d’Or Big Game Players: There will be a lot of tough games, whether it is against a team fighting for survival from relegation or against a team looking to lift the ultimate, and in each of these games, teams will need big game players to step up big-time.
🔚Conclusion:
Right now, Barcelona has continuity and a working idea. Real Madrid has a ceiling probably higher than any club in Europe under a coach whose methods elevate and simplify.
Atlético will scrap for whatever they can get and be ready to pounce if the big two slip up. Everyone else fights for Europe and peace of mind.
So buckle up. La Liga will give us late winners, stubborn blocks, heated touchlines and star turns that light up the year. The football will be fast. The margins will be thin. And the show—every weekend—will feel big.
🔗You can check out today’s games here on MSport.
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