La Liga is the first division of soccer in Spain. It was founded in 1929 and has been disputed uninterruptedly since 1939, after suffering a three-year break due to the Civil War suffered in the country.
After much debate about the number of participants and who would be part of it, the Royal Spanish Football Federation laid the foundations for the championship. Barcelona, Real Madrid, Athletic, Real Sociedad, Getxo and Real Unión were invited for having previously won the Copa del Rey. Atlético de Madrid, Espanyol and Europe obtained their place for having been runners-up. Being an odd number of clubs, a tournament was established to decide the tenth name. Racing de Santander was chosen.
La Liga is made up of 20 teams that face each other back and forth in a total of 38 competition days. In the event of a tie on points between two teams, the one that wins the direct duel is over. If the two games end in a draw, the overall goal difference is used. At the end of the season, the first four classified qualify for the Champions League. The fifth gets a place in the Europa League. The sixth access to the Europa Conference League. The three clubs with the fewest points go down to LaLiga SmartBank.
Spanish teams have played a very important role in European competitions in recent years. Real Madrid, Barcelona, Sevilla and Atlético de Madrid have been the most successful clubs on a continental level. In 2006, it became the first national league to have the Champions League and UEFA Cup champions from the same season. A milestone that was also subsequently repeated in 2014, 2015, 2016 and 2018. In 2015, La Liga was the first to qualify five teams for the group stage of the Champions League.
Since its creation, only nine teams have been able to win the tournament: Real Madrid, Barcelona, Athletic, Atlético de Madrid, Valencia, Real Sociedad, Deportivo de La Coruña, Sevilla and Real Betis. Furthermore, the first three have never been demoted.
In the Republic of Ireland and the United Kingdom, it can be seen live through the pay channel LaLiga TV.
