If La Liga refuses to postpone the 19 August kick-off, the dispute may end up in the hands of the Spanish Football Federation’s Competition Committee
Real Madrid have formally requested a delay to their opening La Liga fixture against Osasuna, citing insufficient rest and preparation time following their extended participation in the Club World Cup.
The league opener was originally set for 19 August but Madrid have proposed rescheduling it to 29 October. The club have submitted a letter to La Liga outlining their rationale for the request. It is backed by Osasuna and the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), according to Diario AS.
The main point of Madrid’s appeal is player welfare. With the club reaching the Club World Cup semi-final, which will be played on 9 July, Madrid argue that the current schedule would leave players without the mandated rest period or adequate preseason preparation.
Under Spain’s collective bargaining agreement for professional footballers, players are entitled to a minimum of three weeks of vacation followed by three weeks of preseason training.
Despite this, La Liga has yet to formally acknowledge receipt of the request and insists it will evaluate the claims only after reviewing the documentation.
In fact, La Liga president Javier Tebas previously insisted that Madrid’s fixture would not be moved.
Tebas said: “They ask for more days to rest, but they can earn €140m from the Club World Cup, double Alaves’s budget, and then ask for time to prepare.”
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If La Liga refuses to postpone the 19 August kick-off, the dispute may end up in the hands of Competition Committee, an independent disciplinary wing of the RFEF. The date – which unusually falls on a Tuesday – was initially selected as a concession to Madrid’s congested calendar. However, the AFE players’ union argues that this still fails to comply with agreed rest periods.
