Undoubtedly, the Spanish La Liga is one of the best leagues in the world. For any reason, it may interest you to know how many games are played in a La Liga season.
In this article, you’ll find out how many games a La Liga team plays in a season.
Also, you’ll find out the total number of La Liga matches and how many games a La Liga club can play in a complete season.
Read More: The Most Decorated Real Madrid Players
The La Liga Schedule Breakdown
In an ideal situation, La Liga runs from August to May every season.
Pointedly, La Liga starts on the second weekend of August. Most times, the La Liga starts on a Saturday.
Also, you can learn more about the La Liga emergency transfer window and how it works.
On What Days Are La Liga Matches Played?
Throughout the season, most League matches are played on weekends – Saturday and Sunday especially.
However, in some cases, matches are scheduled for Friday, Monday, or any other day of the week.
The major factor determining whether to schedule or reschedule matches to weekdays is other cup matches.
At What Times Are EPL Matches Played?
During the week, La Liga matches are played mostly at night. Why? Just so most fans could watch these matches after returning from work.
These weekday matches start anywhere from 7:15 Pm to 8:00 pm CET.
However, most of the La Liga matches are played during the day on weekends. The first weekend fixture on Saturday usually starts from 3:30 pm to 5:00 pm CET time.
Calculation: how many games in a La Liga season?
The total number of La Liga matches in a season is 380. How?
There are 20 La Liga teams. The 20 teams play against each other weekly, hence 10 fixtures per week.
Also, remember that each team plays a total of 38 matches. Hence, there are 38 match days.
Therefore, we arrived at 380 by multiplying 10 weekly fixtures by 38 match days (10 X 38 = 380).
Read on to get a more detailed breakdown.
We’ll calculate in two ways; for a single team and the entire League.
Per team calculation: How Many Games A Team Plays In A La Liga Season
The total number of La Liga matches a single team would play during a season is 38
Since 1997, 20 teams have competed in La Liga.
Each team will play 19 other teams in the League twice – home and away. Hence, 19 X 2 = 38.
Hence, the total number of La Liga matches a single team would play during a season is 38.
This explains why 38 is always the total number of matches played when you check the La Liga table on the last day of the season.
(Learn more about League table abbreviations like MP, App, GD, etc.)
Consider Reading: Who Is The Best Barcelona Player?
Cumulative League Calculation: Total Games Played By ALL La Liga Teams In A Season
Remember, there are 20 La Liga teams. The 20 teams play against each other every week, hence 10 fixtures per week.
Also, remember that there are a total of 38 matches to be played.
Therefore, the total number of La Liga matches in a season is 380.
Here is how we arrived at 380 – the total number of fixtures per week (10) multiplied by the total number of weeks or match days (38) equals 380 matches.
Hence, 10 X 38 = 380 total number of La Liga matches in a season.
However, there is a wrong way to calculate this.
A wrong way to calculate this is by multiplying one team’s total matches by 20 teams. i.e. 38 X 20 = 760. This is the wrong way to calculate the total La Liga matches.
Why you may ask.
In the above calculation, two things are wrong:
- There is duplicity in the calculation. One single match (fixture) would be counted twice.
- The focus has shifted from the collective fixture and wrongly changed to the individual team focus.
Read Also: How Many Games Are Played In A Premier League Season?
Which Player Has The Most La Liga Appearances?
Andoni Zubizarreta has the highest number of La Liga appearances in the League’s history – 622.
Joaquin is next with 615 La Liga all-time appearances.
Here is a table of the top 10 players with the most appearances in La Liga:
| Rank | Player | Appearances |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Andoni Zubizarreta | 620 |
| 2 | Joaquin | 615 |
| 3 | Raul | 550 |
| 4 | Eusebio | 543 |
| 5 | Paco Buyo | 542 |
| 6 | Raul Garcia | 532 |
| 7 | Manolo Sanchis | 523 |
| 8 | Lionel Messi | 520 |
| 9 | Iker Casillas | 510 |
| 10 | Sergio Ramos | 508 |
FAQ Answered
First, remember that before 1997, 22 teams played in La Liga but later reduced to 20. The main reason is to promote development and excellence at the club and international level.
So, in essence, there are 38 La Liga games because 20 teams now compete in the league instead of 22.
As explained above, each team plays 19 other teams twice (home and away); hence 19 X 2 = 38.
Simple. 10 fixtures per week multiplied by 38 match days. 10 X 38 = 380. See our explanation above for a breakdown.
In an unreal situation where a La Liga team, for example, plays and wins all available competition, they must have played a total of about 70 matches in an entire season.
Conclusion
We’ve established that each La Liga team plays 38 matches, and the total number of La Liga fixtures are 380.
10 League games per week for 38 weeks or match days = 10 X 38 = 380 total La Liga matches in a season.
Also, we pointed out that Adoni Zubizareta has the most La Liga all-time appearances – 620.
Also, more international competitions like the UEFA Nations League, Finalissima, etc, are not helping players get the needed rest. This is one of the reasons why players are now having heart issues more often in recent times.
Further Reading:
- Who’s The Highest All Time Goal Scorer In La Liga?
- Guardiola’s Champions League Record Breakdown
- Jose Mourinho vs Pep Guardiola H2H Stats
- Barcelona MSN Stats and Breakdown
- Who is Real Madrid All Time Assist Leader?
