The second half of August traditionally brings with it the return of European club football. The players have had their, every summer shorter it seems, break, the pre-season tours under the belts and their home crowds eager for a return.
None more eager than the fans of Spanish LaLiga waiting for yet another exciting season of top-flight action across the country. FC Barcelona enter the season as the reigning champions, with two rivals from the capital determined to make amends. The battle will be more than heated down the entire table, as every place on it has more than a few capable contestants. Teams that usually feature in European competitions, such as Villarreal, Athletic Bilbao or Real Betis will be put under pressure by the likes of Osasuna, Mallorca and Rayo Vallecano who’d like to turn their European adventures into a recurring, planned trip. The two historical giants of Spanish football, Sevilla and Valencia, will be working hard to put their recent troubles behind and get back into the mix.
All in all, it promises to be an exciting one, so let’s take a closer look in what we believe will be the key teams to follow.
The Title Race: A three-way battle?
It was, for a very long time, almost exclusively a privilege shared by two clubs – FC Barcelona and Real Madrid went head-to-head for the LaLiga title year after year. More recently, in the last decade or so, Atlético Madrid’s stellar rise under Diego Simeone spiralled Los Colchoneros right to the top, squeezing their way to the top two more often and even winning two league titles in the process.
By now, based on their budget, spending, stature and roster, Atlético Madrid enters each LaLiga season as a legitimate part of the trident that seeks the title. This season will be no different.
It’s now been a second consecutive busy summer at the Metropolitano front offices, with quite a few signings joining the squad. Their last season’s reinforcements, especially forwards Julián Álvarez and Alexander Sørloth, have had successful campaings, but the team fell short, the impression was, at all the crucial moments of the season. They finished third in LaLiga, 12 points off the top and 8 points behind second.
Feeling (rightfully) that their front line is now as stacked as it needs to be, they’ve turned their attention elsewhere this summer, investing funds in signings in the midfield and at the heart of the defensive line. The headline deal involved Villarreal’s Alejandro Baena, the player with most assists in LaLiga in 2025, who decided to switch alliances for a fee of €42M.
In the backline, they’ve added a name for each position. David Háncko came from Feyenoord to play at centre-back; Matteo Ruggeri parted Atalanta to join Atlético on the left side, and on the right, Marc Pubill makes a big leap forward in his career, joining from LaLiga 2 outfit Almeria.
Departures-wise, it’s a kind of a change of guard moment, as the departing players might me missed more emotionally than by their recent impact of the pitch. A lot of the title winning squad of 2021 has now left the club, such as Rodrigo de Paul (Inter Miami), Thomas Lemar and Axel Witsel (both to Girona), Ángel Correa or Saúl Ñíguez moving on to different destinations around the world.
All things considered, the quality of their squad didn’t change too much, if anything, it grew. So Atlético will certainly try to get into the mix again, especially given the fact that they’ve felt they could go all the way for a good part of last season.
They looked like it, but lacked fuel in the end to keep up with the big boys, Real Madrid and Barça.
It was a bit of a rollercoaster ride, last season, in LaLiga. Barça’s excellent start was followed by a mid-season slump that saw Real Madrid furiously overtake them at the end, only for Los Blancos to start slipping up themselves and hand the top spot to Barcelona again.
They had the level to keep up all year long, but fell short in the end, falling especially hard in the two head to head encounters with Barcelona, losing 0-4 in Madrid and 4-3 away from home. Add the additional two losses in the Supercup (5-2) and the Copa del Rey final (3-2), each defeat stung worse than the previous one, and the hunger for revenge in Real Madrid’s camp will be enormous.
When it comes to changes in Real Madrid’s camp, the biggest definitely has to do with the dugout, rather than the pitch. Carlo Ancelotti has left the club, finishing his second stint in charge of Los Blancos, a rather successful one.
Stepping in his shoes is his former player, and a former Real Madrid player, Xabi Alonso. Ancelotti and Alonso worked together in the making of the famous ‘Décima’ title, and the Spaniard has since become a manager, impressing with his work at Bayer Leverkusen that earned him a shot at what is probably the hottest bench in the world.
A few players joined with Alonso, most notably Liverpool’s famous right-back Trent Alexander-Arnold, bought for a simbolic fee of €10M so he could represent Real Madrid at the Club World Cup (his Liverpool contract was expiring on July 1st). The left flank also got some reinforcement as Álvaro Carreras joined from Benfica. However, they also looked to secure the future. That’s the best way to explain the signing of the upcoming Argentine gem, Franco Mastantuono, who impressed in River Plate and earned his boyhood club a hefty fee of €45M.
The players that departed Real Madrid, much like it was the case with their neighboring rivals, were either past their prime or deemed not to have the level required to contribute. However, among them, two true legends. Luka Modrić, the most decorated player in the club’s history, joined AC Milan after Real Madrid decided not to extend his contract for another season. Similar was the case of Lucas Vásquez, although his future is yet to be determined. His footballing future, that is.
All in all, the atmosphere surrounding the Los Blancos’ camp is largely positive, with the ever-present probing and articles of the Spanish press stirring things up every now and then. According to them, players like Vinícius Júnior and Rodrygo have some question marks in the air regarding their future at the Santiago Bernabéu, but it’s not something to take too seriously at this stage.
We saw a good bit of them in action under Xabi Alonso at the Club World Cup, and while it pretty much looked like a work in progress, it was clear that the team was buying into the Basque’s ideas. Things, of course, will take time, but time is a currency that is spent quickly when the stakes are as high as they are in Real Madrid. And with how last season’s champions are looking, despite all of their troubles, things better start ticking quickly in Madrid.
When standards rise as much as they did in FC Barcelona in the 21st century, a trophyless season calls for alarm. Xavi Hernández learned that all too well, losing his job in May 2024 despite winning LaLiga and the Supercopa de Espana in the previous season. Even though quite a few questions were asked once Hansi Flick was announced as Barça’s new manager, the German hit the ground running immediately.
Barça impressed, not only with their results, but the manner in which they’ve achieved them. Entertaining, free-flowing offensive football fueled by La Masia’s youth banged goals for fun. Lamine Yamal look set to take over the throne of the world’s best player, many would argue he already did that, and it’s the best possible platform for Barcelona to build their future on.
They ended up winning the domestic treble, beating Real Madrid in two finals and netting more than a hundred goals. Their offensive fire power impressed, but their defensive work was notable as well, especially the risky high line that caught their opponents offside time and time again.
It’s now a thing we’ve grown accustomed to, Barcelona’s transfer windows riddled with FFP troubles, player wages, registration doubts, etc.
The first shock of the summer came when Nico Williams’ deal fell through overnight after the player’s entourage asked for guarantees for his registration, something Barcelona’s directors couldn’t, or didn’t want to accept. After the second train to Barcelona he’ failed to board, it’s highly unlikely we’ll ever see the Williams-Yamal combo on the flanks for both club and country.
A deal that was, somehow, completed swiftly was also followed by controversy. Joan García, the highest-rated goalkeeper of LaLiga last season, joined from city rivals Espanyol. Espanyol’s fans didn’t like that move and it caused quite a negative backlash towards the keeper. His return to RCDE Stadium will certainly be a fun one. Marcus Rashford also joined on loan from Manchester United to provide more options up front after Ansu Fati and Pau V̋ictor were sent packing. Roony Bargdhji, Copenhagen’s Swedish prodigy, also joined and reportedly impressed during pre-season.
If they’re pre-season shape is anything to go by, with 20 goals scored in four matches, they look ready to pick up where they left off last season.
The hunting pack
Below the front-runners, the battle is as crowded and as fierce as ever. Athletic Bilbao, who finished last season in fourth can be more than happy with the fact that they’ve kept Nico Williams and the core of their team stayed pretty much intact. Their challenge, however, will be balancing the requirements of domestic football along the exhausting mid-week battles of the Champions League.
Similar to Bilbao’s case, Villarreal will also find themselves in the mix after finishing fifth last season. They, however, have suffered some changes, most notably the departure of Alejandro Baena. Knowing their business model and the work of their manager, Marcelino García Toral, we’ve left with little space for doubting the continuing of their successful journey.
Real Betis, Celta Vigo and Rayo Vallecano will be the remaining three teams representing Spain in continental football, but also looking to secure their places in Europe for yet another season through league football.
Mallorca’s proces under Jagoba Arrasate looks to move towards including the Balearic team to that battle as well, alongside two sleeping giants – Sevilla and Valencia.
Sevilla barely kept their head above water last season, so they’ll be looking for a drastic change under new manager Matías Almeyda. Similarly, Real Sociedad find themselves at a turning point after long-serving manager Imanol Alguacil has left the ship after a rough season that saw them finish eleventh.
In Valencia, things were looking really bad in the first half of the season, but the appointment of Carlos Corberán now has the famous club with it’s sights set on fighting for European spots.
Conclusion
So much to look forward to, so much to hope for for many fans around the world, and so, so much to enjoy in the upcoming football fiesta!