Man City, Real may play over 70 games this year as schedules grow
Real Madrid is set to officially begin their 2024/25 season on Wednesday night in Poland. As the reigning Champions League winners, Los Blancos are facing off against Atalanta for the UEFA Super Cup. The Italian side previously collected the Europa League trophy by thumping Bayer Leverkusen in May.
The Spanish giants typically play a ton of matches throughout their seasons due to their continued success. Along with their regular LaLiga fixtures, the club also usually makes deep runs in other cup competitions. Extending their time in tournaments, in turn, adds more fixtures to the schedule.
After collecting three trophies last season, Real played a total of 55 matches in the year. This figure, however, could very well increase during the 2024/25 campaign. Assuming they make it to the final of every competition, Los Blancos could be set to feature in over 70 total fixtures within the next year. English side Manchester City may even play 75 games in 2024/25 as well.
Real captain on expanded tournaments: “It doesn’t make sense”
The two biggest reasons for an increased schedule are the expansion of the Champions League and Club World Cup. FIFA/UEFA decided to add matches to both of these tournaments moving forward. The moves have been met with overwhelming criticism by players, coaches, and fans.
FIFPro, the global soccer players union, previously announced a lawsuit against FIFA regarding the expanded Club World Cup. The union currently represents around 65,000 professional soccer players. The governing body has since attempted to avoid the potential court case by discussing the issue with FIFPro.
Ahead of their matchup with Atalanta, Real manager Carlo Ancelotti and captain Dani Carvajal acknowledged the increased scheduling issue. “It’s going to be a very demanding season from the start,” stated Ancelotti.
Carvajal continued by criticizing the potential heavy fixture list even further. “It doesn’t make sense, you can’t keep up this pace,” said the veteran defender. “We and our families suffer. It is impossible to maintain the level with so many games and trips.”
Manchester City, Real Madrid combat games by resting players
Forcing top teams to play additional games puts even more risk on the players’ health. Injuries have already been on the rise in recent years and will likely further increase due to added fixtures. Everyone wants to see the best players on the pitch during the season. Partially because of this risk, few outside of the governing bodies are in favor of increased scheduling.
Manchester City started their 2024/25 campaign with a dramatic win against Manchester United in the Community Shield on Saturday. The reigning English champions could feature in even more matches this season than Real. This ultimately comes down to whether or not City can make a deep run in the Carabao Cup. Spain does not currently have a second-tiered cup competition at the moment.
A potentially new injury crisis in the sport could also very well lead to managers resting their stars for certain games. This may eventually affect smaller competitions such as the Club World Cup or the Carabao Cup. No one would blame teams for prioritizing important tournaments as fixture lists continue to grow. Under Guardiola, City has collected the Carabao Cup for four consecutive years beginning in 2017.
PHOTOS: IMAGO.