Real Madrid escalated their complaints over scheduling on Saturday, with manager Carlo Ancelotti confirming the team will refuse to play in the future if their players aren’t given a minimum 72 hours’ rest between matches.
Madrid played rivals Atlético Madrid in their Champions League round-of-16 second leg on Wednesday, a game which kicked off at 9 p.m. local time and lasted 120 minutes, plus a penalty shootout, ending at close to midnight.
Their next game was against Villarreal on Saturday in LaLiga, with the match starting at 6.30 p.m. local time.
Ancelotti complained about the congested calendar on Friday — blaming “television rights and money” and saying “the last thing on anyone’s mind is the players’ recovery.”
Madrid went a step further on Saturday ahead of kickoff in Villarreal, with the club’s TV channel stating that “Real Madrid will ask for FIFA’s support … so that this never happens again.”
Following Madrid’s 2-1 win over Villarreal, Ancelotti confirmed the club’s stance.
“I think today is the last time that we’ll play a game before 72 hours,” he said. “We won’t do it again, without 72 hours of rest. We asked LaLiga to change the time of the game twice, and they didn’t do anything. But this is the last time.”
Asked to confirm if the team would show up if a game was scheduled without 72 hours rest, he responded: “No, of course not.”
FIFA recommends a minimum of 72 hours’ rest between games, in order to protect players’ health. However timings are set by competition organizers, with LaLiga determining kickoff times for league games in Spain.
Real Madrid’s title rivals Barcelona and Real Madrid have an additional day’s rest this weekend, facing off in a crucial LaLiga game on Sunday evening.
Saturday’s win, courtesy of two goals from Kylian Mbappé, put Real Madrid three points clear of Barcelona at the top of the table, but having played two games more.
“I’m very proud of the players, it was a tricky game,” Ancelotti added. “And the opponent plays very well. We hung on, above all in the second half. The team was exhausted but that’s normal. It’s a victory that says a lot about this team and the resources in this squad.”
The busy fixture list has been a regular source of complaint among leading clubs and players in recent years, with the 2024-25 season being further extended by the newly expanded FIFA Club World Cup, which will take place between June 15 and July 13.
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