Second division gears up for two weeks without internationals

LaLiga’s Segunda division is preparing for a new FIFA-driven selection period that breaks with the usual pattern: it runs from September 21 to October 6, during which several players from the 22 clubs will miss league games due to international call-ups.

As Mundo Deportivo reports, this Friday Luis de la Fuente is expected to announce Spain’s squad for the first three matches of their Nations League qualifying group, while Santi Denia will name the Under-21 squad for the European Championship qualifiers next summer. From the weekend, then, the season will enter an international window shaped by the updated FIFA calendar.

FIFA window, but Segunda keeps going

In Primera division there will be a pause across two weekends, but in Segunda that won’t happen. The second tier has two matchdays scheduled during the window. The first is set for the weekend of September 26-27, and the second comes at the start of October (the first weekend, October 3-4).

During these 16 days, every club will have to cope with part of its squad leaving for national team duties—something the teams are said to accept as part of the new framework. Mundo Deportivo adds that the choice to keep playing despite the international pause has been agreed by the clubs and approved within LaLiga.

More windows across the season

The same situation will return in later periods: November 9-17, and March 22-30 of the following year. There is also another window scheduled for June 7-15, which will affect clubs with internationals who are playing the play-offs for promotion to Primera.

Finally, the paper notes that next season the first pause would run from September 20 to October 5, and—barring surprises—this would continue until December 31, 2030, the end date of the current FIFA calendar. The final professional football calendar, according to the article, will be drawn up at talks between the league and AFE in the early part of next year.