La Liga Matchday 1 delivered ten matches, twenty teams, a manager’s homecoming, three promoted clubs making their point, and two penalties that turned a wild Saturday on its head.
La Liga’s 2026/27 season began on August 15 and, because several clubs had players deep into the World Cup over the summer, its opening round stretched out unevenly across nearly two weeks rather than a single weekend. Ten matches, all twenty teams — here’s how Matchday 1 actually played out.
Alavés 3-0 Getafe
The season opener set the tone for how thin the margins can be. Getafe’s Kiko Femenía was sent off just before half-time, his initial yellow card upgraded to red by VAR for a dangerous, high challenge — and the game turned on it. Nahuel Tenaglia headed home in the 73rd minute, former Real Madrid forward Mariano Díaz curled in a brilliant second in stoppage time, and Mikel Rodríguez — set up by Mariano — completed the scoring soon after. Getafe manager José Bordalás didn’t dispute the turning point afterward: the red card, he said, had conditioned the entire match.
Sevilla 2-1 Rayo Vallecano
Just as dramatic, in its own way. Rayo took an early lead through Álvaro García, Sevilla’s Jon Guridi levelled from the penalty spot, and substitute Gerard “Peque” Fernández converted a second Sevilla penalty deep into stoppage time to snatch all three points. It was a difficult first outing for Rayo’s new coach, Beñat San José — made harder by the fact his side were forced to play the match away from their own Vallecas stadium, after Madrid’s regional government suspended the ground’s safety license following an audit. Rayo have had to use Leganés’s stadium for home fixtures this season, an institutional headache that will shape their year regardless of results on the pitch.
Racing Santander 2-2 Villarreal
Racing, back in the top flight after 14 years away, led 2-0 at El Sardinero through an early Andrés Martín penalty and a Sergio Martínez volley. Villarreal, under new coach Iñigo Pérez, responded with two goals in the space of a single minute right before half-time — Pape Gueye and Nicolás Pépé — to salvage a 2-2 draw and take a point away from Racing’s raucous return to the division.
Espanyol 3-0 Levante
The most one-sided scoreline of the round. Roberto Fernández scored twice and Tyrhys Dolan added a third as Espanyol, under long-serving manager Manolo González, made light work of Levante at the RCDE Stadium.
Deportivo La Coruña 1-1 Elche
Deportivo, back in the top flight after eight years and now managed by Clarence Seedorf, opened with a home draw against Elche. New signing Pierre-Emerick Aubameyang marked his debut in style, finishing off a long ball from fellow debutant Lorenzo Amatucci to score in the 21st minute — before Elche, under their own new appointment Martín Anselmi, equalised in the second half through Marc Aguado.
Atlético Madrid 2-0 Málaga
Málaga, also returning after eight years away, held out at the Metropolitano until late on. Two substitutes settled it: Lee Kang-in, a summer signing from Paris Saint-Germain, curled in a brilliant finish in the 70th minute on his debut, and Álex Baena’s free-kick doubled the lead five minutes from time. Diego Simeone’s post-match assessment was generous and fair: “Málaga played a great game.”
Valencia 0-1 Real Betis
The tightest of the round’s low-scoring games. Real Betis needed a late goal from substitute Pablo García to see off Valencia on the road and open their campaign with a win.
La Liga Matchday 1: Real Madrid’s Delayed Opener
La Liga Matchday 1 didn’t arrive as a single, tidy weekend… Real Madrid’s actual Matchday 1 fixture was delayed and eventually played on August 26 — the first home match of José Mourinho’s second spell in charge, thirteen years after his first ended. It was a statement. Kylian Mbappé scored a hat-trick either side of a Luka Sučić equaliser for the visitors, and Vinícius Júnior added a third, as Madrid ran out comfortable 4-1 winners in front of a full Bernabéu crowd.
Celta Vigo 1-2 Osasuna
Celta led early through captain Iago Aspas, but Osasuna turned the game around in the second half — Kike Barja levelling before Ante Budimir converted a penalty to complete the comeback and hand Celta an opening-day defeat at home.
Barcelona 2-0 Athletic Club
Barcelona’s delayed opener, also played on August 27, at Camp Nou. Raphinha rounded the goalkeeper in the 37th minute after a defence-splitting Pedri pass, and Fermín López pounced on an Aymeric Laporte error to seal it in the 82nd. World Cup winner Rodri made his Barcelona debut off the bench under new manager Hansi Flick.
An Opening, Not a Verdict
Ten matches produced a familiar hierarchy at the top and a genuinely competitive picture beneath it. Real Madrid and Barcelona both won, but neither had it entirely their own way until deep into their matches. The three promoted clubs — Racing Santander, Deportivo, and Málaga — all took something from their openers without looking remotely overawed, a real early sign for a trio many expected to struggle immediately. And two of the round’s biggest margins, Alavés’s win over Getafe and Sevilla’s over Rayo, were shaped as much by a red card and a stoppage-time penalty as by anything resembling total control.
None of this settles anything yet. One match tells you about a mood, not a season. But La Liga’s opening round gave every club in the country something to build from, or something to fix, before the campaign properly gets going.