Spanish La Liga is amongst the most competitive football leagues, as the tournament is about 95 years old. The Campeonato Nacional de Liga, also known as Primera División or La Liga, was introduced in 1929.
Its administration is under Nacional de Futbol Profesional. The tournament has witnessed some fascinating and lip-smacking contests.
In this piece, we discuss La Liga’s structure and how the entire competition is played. The league starts in August and ends in May the following year.
Organisation of La Liga
A total of 20 Spanish clubs contest in the league in a round-robin format. The teams play each other twice in the entire season, once on their home ground and once on the other clubs’ home ground. This gives every team an equal chance to take advantage of playing in home conditions.
Promotion and Relegation in La Liga
Spain’s second division is known as the Segunda División, and it is closely integrated with La Liga and forms an important part of the league’s system.
Two teams that finish at the bottom of the La Liga at the end of the season are relegated to the Segunda División. However, the top two teams of the Segunda División get promoted to La Liga.
The team that has finished in the 18th spot in La Liga will be up against the third-placed team in the Segunda División.
Points System in La Liga
The winning team gets three points, one point is given to both teams for a draw, and zero points for losing. This system adds competitiveness to the league.
There are 38 match days in the entire season that underline the rankings as the team with the most points is declared La Liga winner.
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Qualification for European Championships
Like other European leagues, La Liga gives a chance to the teams that have finished in the top four to qualify for the Champions League, while the teams that have finished in the fifth and sixth positions qualify for the second-tier Europa League.
The winner of Copa Del Rey gets a chance to play in the Europa League even though that team hasn’t finished in the top six of the league standings.
La Liga provides a competitive playing environment for some of the finest talents, while its offensiveness and competitiveness make the game attractive and skilful. Its promotion and relegation provide an equal chance to all teams.
Rules in Case of a Tiebreaker
In case there is a tie between two clubs, then the head-to-head goal difference method is used without considering away goals. In case of a tie between two or more clubs, then the result is considered by reviewing the games played by clubs against each other through head-to-head points and head-to-head goal difference.
If the games aren’t played on the basis of two legs by the teams, then the result is considered through total goals scored and total goal difference.
If still the result isn’t determined, then fair play comes into use, where one point is deducted for a yellow card, two points for two yellow cards, and three points for direct red cards. Five points are deducted if the coach, any club personnel, or executive is disqualified or suspended if there is any undisciplined act by any team.
In case of misconduct of supporters of any team, then five points will be deducted, which can also be extended to six or seven points in case of serious or very dangerous acts.
In case the stadium needs to be closed due to an emergency, then ten points are deducted. If the committee decides not to issue a penalty, then points will be removed. If still there is no result, then a tie-break game will be conducted on a neutral ground.
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