La Liga: Dates, teams, venues, history & more

La Liga is one of the top five leagues in European football, with many of the world's top stars regularly plying their trade in the Spanish top-flight.

Real Madrid will be striving to retain their La Liga title after finishing 10 points clear of second-placed Barcelona last term, with the Catalans now under new management following the appointment of ex-Bayern Munich boss Hansi Flick.

Here is everything you need to know about La Liga.

La Liga - Dates

The 2024/25 La Liga season begins on Thursday 15th August 2024 and will last all the way through to Sunday 25th May 2025.

La Liga - Teams

La Liga is the men's top professional football division in Spain and it is contested by 20 teams.

Last season, Granada, Almeria and Cadiz were relegated, while Real Madrid, Barcelona, Girona and Atletico Madrid finished in the top four.

Athletic Bilbao and Real Sociedad qualified for the Europa League in fifth and sixth, respectively, while Real Betis earned Conference League qualification in seventh.

Here are the list of teams that will compete in the 2024/25 La Liga campaign.

• Alaves
• Atheltic Bilbao
• Atletico Madrid
• Barcelona
• Celta Vigo
• Espanyol
• Getafe
• Girona
• Las Palmas
• Leganes
• Mallorca
• Osasuna
• Rayo Vallecano
• Real Betis
• Real Madrid
• Real Sociedad
• Sevilla
• Valencia
• Valladolid
• Villarreal

La Liga - Venues & stadiums

La Liga follows the usual double round-robin format, meaning each club plays every other club twice throughout the campaign, once at home and once away, for 38 matches.

Some of the world's most iconic stadiums are used every season, including Barcelona's Camp Nou and Real Madrid's Santiago Bernabeu.

Here is the list of stadiums that will be used in La Liga for the 2024/25 season.

Alaves	Mendizorrotza
Athletic Bilbao	San Mames
Atletico Madrid	Metropolitano
Barcelona	Olimpic Lluis Companys and Camp Nou (mid-season)
Celta Vigo	Balaidos
Espanyol	Stage Front Stadium
Getafe	Coliseum
Girona	Montilivi
Las Palmas	Gran Canaria
Leganes	Butarque
Mallorca	Son Moix
Osasuna	El Sadar
Rayo Vallecano	Vallecas
Real Betis	Benito Villamarin
Real Madrid	Santiago Bernabeu
Real Sociedad	Anoeta
Sevilla	Ramon Sanchez-Pizjuan
Valencia	Mestalla
Valladolid	Jose Zorrilla
Villarreal	La Ceramica

La Liga - History

In April 1928, Jose Maria Acha, a director at Getxo, proposed the idea of a national league in Spain. The Real Federacion Espanola de Futbol eventually agreed to create a 10-team league in 1929.

Barcelona won the first La Liga crown in 1929, but it was Athletic Bilbao that dominated the early years, winning the division in 1930, 1931, 1934 and 1936. 

The league did not run from 1936-1939 due to the Spanish Civil War before returning for the 1939-40 campaign.

Over the years, the number of clubs competing would expand, and in 1987, it reached 20 clubs, although 22 clubs competed between 1995 and 1997.

In total, there have been 93 La Liga campaigns since its inception in 1929.

La Liga - Odds and favourites

Having won the La Liga title last season, Real Madrid are favourites to defend their crown this time around.

Manager Carlo Ancelotti has stayed on after helping the club win the league title and Champions League last year, and he will have some new faces within his squad.

The likes of Joselu, Nacho Fernandez, Toni Kroos, Luka Modric and Lucas Vazquez have all moved on, but Kylian Mbappe and Endrick have arrived to bolster the club's attack.

Barcelona are the second favourites and they will be under new management after Flick's arrival.

Diego Simeone's Atleti are next in the betting, while Girona, who qualified for the Champions League last season, are outsiders to get their hands on the trophy.