Real Madrid and Barcelona face a packed schedule in the 2024/25 season.
With both sides competing in the newly formatted UEFA Champions League in the coming months, there will be major demands placed on their respective squads on the back of a busy international summer.
Los Blancos kick off their European title defence at home to VfB Stuttgart with Barcelona heading to Ligue 1 side AS Monaco.
Cup action will feature heavily at the start of 2025 and access to Copa del Rey tickets will be sought after by fans.
The extension of the Champions League means an increase of two games, with the six-match group stage replaced by eight matches in the new league phase.
However, there is a major schedule gap between the sixth and seventh games in the first phase, with a big space from December 10-11 and January 21-22.
That offers some continental respite for both Carlo Ancelotti and Hansi Flick, but both Barcelona and Real Madrid will be engaged in the Copa del Rey and the Spanish Supercopa, in the first week of January.
The Round of 32 in the former is scheduled for January 4-5 with the Spanish Supercopa in Saudi Arabia on January 8-12.
That will likely mean a rotated team features in both Copa del Rey games to prioritise the trip to the Middle East but the chance of overload continues to be a concern.
Ancelotti has already voiced his annoyance over more fixtures being added to a bloated list for his team with Real Madrid later confirming they would be competing in next summer’s FIFA Club World Cup in the USA.
Despite the racking up of ‘unwanted’ games, Ancelotti has built a squad capable of competing across multiple competitions, with Kylian Mbappe now leading their attack, and Barcelona have also bolstered, despite their financial issues.
The pace of the La Liga title will also play a key role in the UEFA Champions League pathway for both clubs if they reach the knockout stages in 2025.
Ancelotti fielded weakened teams in the final weeks of the 2023/24 domestic season, with the title either close or confirmed, as he switched priority to winning another European title.
Flick will be expectant of keeping pace and challenging Real Madrid in the title charge, alongside an improved Atletico Madrid, but the exertion added by the Copa del Rey and Spanish Supercopa could have a major impact on the ‘bigger’ trophies on offer at the end of the season.