Founded in 1929, Spain's LALIGA has been one of the best domestic leagues in all of world soccer since its inception and with storylines galore up and down the table, it promises to be another gripping, nine-month battle for the crown.
Here's what you need to know in order to LALIGA this season.
When does the season start?
The 2023-24 LALIGA season begins on Friday, Aug. 11 with a pair of games -- Almeria vs. Rayo Vallecano (1.30 p.m. ET) and Sevilla vs. Valencia (4 p.m. ET), and runs through May 26, 2024.
How to watch
The action is available live all season long on ESPN+ in the U.S., beginning at 1:30 p.m. ET on Aug. 11.
Can't watch live? All games will be available on replay and with full highlights across ESPN+ and ESPN.com.
What's at stake?
It's simple: the league title! Barcelona may be holding it currently, but they trail Real Madrid in the all-time standings, with 35 trophies to Barca's 27 since the league began in 1929. However, it'll take a lot for any team outside the "big three" to win: you have to go all the way back to 2003-04 (Valencia) to find a winner not named Barcelona, Real Madrid or Atletico Madrid.
Must-see games for the month of August
- Aug. 11: Valencia at Sevilla. Sevilla rallied down the stretch once hiring Jose Luis Mendilibar as manager on March 21, finishing comfortably mid-table with six wins from his first eight games, and then toppling several European giants (including Manchester United) to win the 2022-23 UEFA Europa League for the seventh time in 18 years. They will be hoping to get off to a hot start and continue their late-season form, especially when hosting a Valencia team in transition -- and likely without U.S. midfielder Yunus Musah, who is finalizing a move to Italy's Serie A -- in their season opener.
Aug. 12: Real Madrid at Athletic Club. Athletic Club are considered the most likely team to upset the traditional trio (Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid) at the top end of the table, largely thanks to the Williams brothers, Inaki and Nico, who contributed 23 goals and assists last season.
Meanwhile, giants Real Madrid did welcome England star Jude Bellingham to the Bernabeu this summer, but they face an uncertain start to the season after losing all-world goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois to an ACL injury in training and superstar attacker Karim Benzema, who moved to the Saudi Pro League this summer.
Aug. 20: Atletico Madrid at Real Betis. This could be the game of the month as super-talented Betis look to wreck the upward trajectory of Atletico, who were arguably the best LaLiga team in the second half of the season. Can Betis blunt the likes of Antoine Griezmann and João Félix?
Aug. 20: Cadiz at Barcelona. You never know what you're going to get from Barcelona, especially after another summer of evolution, with captain Sergio Busquets (Inter Miami CF) and other veterans like Jordi Alba (also Miami) leaving, and free agent stars (Ilkay Gündogan, Iñigo Martínez) arriving to add much-needed ballast. While this particular game might not be tricky, it will be Barcelona's first home game of the season not at the Camp Nou, with the side relocating to Olympic Stadium (Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys) this year due to major renovations to their stadium.
Aug. 27: Barcelona at Villarreal. The champs' first real test will come near the end of the month, when they visit Villarreal. Led by former Barca manager Quique Setien, Villarreal finished 2022-23 in torrid form, pulling 33 points from their last 16 matches. They've lost big-money attackers Nicolas Jackson (Chelsea) and Samuel Chukwueze (Milan), however. We'll see how much that throws off their rhythm.