Benzema hits the ball against the opposition of Eric García. /
draw
Real Madrid will begin the defense of the title by visiting Almería and will close it against Athletic at the Bernabéu, while Barça will start the campaign receiving Rayo and will end it by facing Celta in Balaídos
The atypical 2022-23 league campaign, marked by the World Cup in Qatar between November 21 and December 18, already has its road map drawn up. Real Madrid, current champion of the regular tournament and who will not play at home until matchday four at their own request to advance in the remodeling works of their La Castellana venue, will begin their title defense by visiting promoted Almería at the Estadio Municipal of the Mediterranean Games on the weekend of August 12-14 and will close it by taking on Athletic at the Santiago Bernabéu on June 4. The current runner-up, Barça, will start the season by hosting Rayo Vallecano at the Camp Nou and will complete it by challenging Celta at Balaídos.
With regard to the other two Spanish teams qualified for the next edition of the Champions League, Atlético will raise the curtain by going to Getafe and will lower it by also facing Villarreal at home, while Sevilla will open the festivities in Pamplona against Osasuna and will put the finishing touch paying a visit to Real Sociedad.
The first classic of the season, corresponding to matchday nine, will be held on the weekend of October 15-16 at the Santiago Bernabéu and the second will be hosted by the Camp Nou on March 18-19, within matchday 26 of the championship, as determined by the draw held this Thursday at the Luis Aragonés Hall of the Ciudad del Fútbol de Las Rozas, with former soccer players Luis Milla, Alfonso Pérez and Santi Denia, as well as referee Valentín Pizarro Gómez, as innocent hands.
The exotic World Cup to be held in the fall determines a season that will kick off on the weekend of August 12-14 in the First Division and will end on June 4, 2023, while the Second Division competition will start on the weekend of week of August 12-14 and will end on May 28 to make way for the promotion playoff, set between June 4 and 18.
Binge at the end of the year
Subject again to the asymmetric model that was implemented in the 2018-19 campaign, the calendar establishes the weekend of September 17-18 as the date of the first derby between Atlético and Real Madrid, which will have the Metropolitano as the stage on matchday six , while the rojiblanco team will return the visit to their eternal rival from the Spanish capital on the weekend of February 25-26, in a match corresponding to the twenty-third day.
The always volcanic Sevillian derbies are scheduled for the weekend of November 5-6, at the Benito Villamarín, and May 20-21, at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán. Regarding the rest of the duels of maximum territorial rivalry, Barcelona and Espanyol will face each other on the weekend of December 30-31 at the Camp Nou as part of the end-of-the-year binge that reserves attractive matches even for New Year’s Eve, and that of May 13-14 at the RCDE Stadium, while Real Sociedad and Athletic will meet on the weekend of January 13-14 at the Reale Arena and that of April 15-16 at San Mamés.
three breaks
There will be three breaks throughout the season. The first, completed the first six days of the League in the First Division and, therefore, just after the first Madrid derby, will take place from September 19 to 27 and is reserved for the dispute of the two remaining dates of the League of Nations. The second, established between November 11 and December 29, is motivated by the celebration of the World Cup in Qatar, which will alter the usual planning of the teams and will have a tremendous impact on the future of the course. The last one is scheduled between March 20 and 28, 2023.
Regarding the rest of the competitions, we must remember that the Champions League will begin on September 6-7, with the group stage compressed this time into the space of two months, so that the round of 16 will be outlined before the World Cup, and the grand final scheduled for June 10 in Istanbul. The Spanish Super Cup will be played between January 11 and 15 in Saudi Arabia, with Real Madrid, Barcelona, Betis and Valencia as protagonists. For its part, the final of the Copa del Rey will be held on Saturday, April 29. In the case of Real Madrid, two more tournaments are added as a result of their status as current continental champion: the European Super Cup, which will meet Eintracht in Helsinki on August 10, and the Club World Cup, still without dates or assigned venue.
