Real Madrid will play their final La Liga match of the season on Saturday, May 25 to accommodate Taylor Swift’s concert at the Santiago Bernabeu the following week.
The Spanish club are due to play Real Betis on the final day of the Spanish league season over the weekend of May 25-26.
Earlier this month, The Athletic reported that Madrid had made a request to La Liga for their final game of the campaign to be played on Saturday, rather than Sunday, due to Swift’s tour which will include a concert at their stadium.
Swift’s Madrid leg of The Eras Tour takes place across two dates, May 29 and 30, with the facilities requiring sufficient time after the previous football match to accommodate the event.
La Liga has agreed to Madrid’s request, with Betis having no objection to the match being played on the Saturday. The decision, however, may impact other league fixtures.
Matches must be played simultaneously on the final day of the campaign if the outcome of one has a material impact on another in league classification.
As things stand, Madrid are six points clear of Girona at the top of La Liga and eight ahead of Barcelona, in third. Betis are currently sixth in the standings, occupying a Europa Conference League spot, two points ahead of Real Sociedad and seven points behind Athletic Bilbao.
It means that the La Liga title could be decided on a day that suits Madrid’s schedule. To ensure sporting fairness, however, Madrid, Girona, and Betis would need to play their final league fixtures simultaneously.
Swift is set to visit a number of football stadiums as part of the 2024 tour, including Liverpool’s Anfield, Wembley Stadium in London and Lyon’s Groupama Stadium.
Concerns had been raised over her Lyon dates, with the risk of them clashing with the Ligue 1 relegation play-off. Lyon sit three points above the Ligue 1 relegation play-off place.
(Allen J. Schaben / Los Angeles Times via Getty Images)
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