Spanish Football Federation confirms December 18 date for El Clasico

The Spanish Football Federation’s (RFEF) Competition Committee has confirmed that El Clasico between Barcelona and Real Madrid that was initially postponed due to political unrest in Catalonia  will be played on 18 December at Camp Nou, as the clubs had requested, thwarting LaLiga chief Javier Tebas request to move the match to either 4 or 7 December.

The committee was due to make a decision on Monday but Tebas presented fresh arguments in favour of LaLiga’s preferred dates. However, the proposal was given short shrift by the panel, who voted two-to-one in favour of the date Barcelona and Real Madrid had already agreed to.

The game was moved to due to civil unrest in the Catalonia region after the Spanish Supreme Court jailed prominent Catalan political figures for their part in a referendum and subsequent unilateral declaration of independence in 2017. After nights of rioting and clashes with security forces, it was decided the game should be rearranged. LaLiga had originally proposed moving the 26 October fixture to the Bernabéu, but neither club was happy with that arrangement and asked instead for a change of date.

That was the main reasoning behind the RFEF’s ruling, with Liga sources pointing out that although Tebas later suggested moving the match to 4 December, he had previously “only asked the competition committee for a change of venue, not a change of date.”

The tug-of-war may yet have another round to go with LaLiga expected to appeal to the higher authority of the Superior Sports Council and more than ready to drag the matter though the courts. Tebas argues that 18 December already has Copa del Rey fixtures scheduled – as well as European champion Liverpool’s Club World Cup semifinal – and that staging the game on that date will not only devalue the domestic cup but could also negatively impact on the overall economic value of the El Clasico.