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As one of the top domestic leagues in the world, the Spanish top flight provides thrills, spectacular moments, and exciting chases as some of the biggest clubs in global football battle it out for trophies.
Barcelona have won each of the last two La Liga titles and three of the last four, having beaten their El Clasico rivals to the silverware on multiple occasions.
Yet this season, Madrid have brought Jose Mourinho back to change up the mojo, and have spent big in the transfer market in an effort to revamp the team and return their title-winning status.
The Sporting News takes a look at the coming 2026/27 season and predicts who should triumph in different disciplines.
La Liga title prediction 2026/27
Hansi Flick has led Barcelona to back-to-back La Liga titles, winning with gaps of four points in 2024/25 and eight points in 2025/26 over Real Madrid.
Barca's chief rivals have improved this season in the transfer market, but plenty of uncertainty remains after bringing on Jose Mourinho as head coach. Until he proves he is still a top manager capable of competing at the top of modern football from a tactical standpoint, it's hard to back Real Madrid to pip their Clasico rivals this season.
It's not been an overly impressive transfer window from Barcelona, but they do seem to have more business left in the tank before the window closes. Regardless, this is a top team bursting with young talent that seems capable of maintaining their position at the league summit.
Title winner: Barcelona
La Liga table predictions 2026/27
Behind Barcelona, Real Madrid and Atletico Madrid are obvious shoo-ins to secure Champions League places. If Barcelona cannot maintain their place at the top of the table, they will still secure Champions League football with the greatest of ease.
It's likely that Spain will maintain their fifth Champions League place this season, as they and England have dominated European competition the last few years and should continue to earn one of the two available extra places. Villarreal could benefit from this, expected to dip from their third-place finish last season but likely not by too much.
Athletic Club were one of the biggest under-performers through the 2025/26 season, as they finished 12th on points but were the sixth-best team in expected goal (xG) differential. A lot of this was down to injury struggles for Nico Williams, as the team massively underperformed in front of goal by xG. They should improve this season, and are a good pick to shoot up the table and secure European football, especially without being saddled with extra fixtures in the current campaign.
Real Betis and Celta Vigo were excellent last season, and should remain in the mix, and look for last year's 10th place finishers Real Sociedad to give it a run, as they won last year's Copa del Rey and looked strong most of the way until they faded across the final eight games of the year.
Champions League places: Barcelona, Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid, Athletic Club, Villarreal
Other European places: Real Betis, Celta Vigo, Real Sociedad
La Liga Golden Boot winner 2026/27
Even as Real Madrid have failed to win a major trophy for two seasons running, there has been nobody close to Kylian Mbappe in the top goal scorer category across the whole of the La Liga season.
There's no reason that will change in the 2026/27 campaign. In fact, the gap should widen even further with Real Madrid's addition of Yan Diomande, who will provide even more attacking creativity to the Madrid front line and give Mbappe the chance to increase his tally even further.
While the problem of Mbappe and Vinicius Jr. coexisting on the left wing of Real Madrid has caused significant issues for the team as a whole — and should continue to do so this season, as explained above — it has not proven remotely damaging to Mbappe's individual output, and he should once again dominate the goal scoring chart.
La Liga Golden Boot winner: Kylian Mbappe
La Liga notable games 2026/27
El Clasico fixtures
October 25, 2026 — Barcelona vs. Real Madrid (Camp Nou, Barcelona)
May 9, 2027 — Real Madrid vs. Barcelona (Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid)
Last season, the two teams split the El Clasico results in La Liga competition, each winning on home turf, but Barcelona won the other on neutral soil, securing a 3-2 win in the Supercopa final.
It's likely that this time around, both games are once again super competitive, leaving the final result very much a toss-up. Expect a split once again, meaning the La Liga title will be decided elsewhere. However, that early May meeting could present a mouth-watering occasion should the title not already be decided and the league championship hangs in the balance...
Madrid derby
September 20, 2026 — Atletico Madrid vs. Real Madrid (Metropolitano)
April 4, 2027 — Real Madrid vs. Atletico Madrid (Santiago Bernabeu, Madrid)
Real Madrid have held the slight advantage over their cross-town rivals in recent years, but still continue to struggle on the road at the Metropolitano, where Atleti have just been far better in the last decade than their road performances.
Unless Jose Mourinho can crack the code to beating Atletico Madrid at their home fortress, expect these two teams to split their league meetings, while Real Madrid would have the advantage in any neutral field meeting they find themselves scheduled to contest.
Basque derby
November 1, 2026 — Athletic Club vs. Real Sociedad (San Mames Stadium)
May 2, 2027 — Real Sociedad vs. Athletic Club (Reale Arena)
As both Basque clubs establish themselves as annual top-half contenders, it has created an exciting and tense atmosphere for the derby between Athletic Club and Real Sociedad, as the match is contested not only for bragging rights but also tangible stakes for valuable league points.
Last season, Real Sociedad got the best of Athletic Club, securing four points across the two league meetings, while winning 1-0 in both legs of their Copa del Rey semifinal matchup as well, en route to winning the title and securing European play.
Athletic are expected to have a bounce-back season, so they should manage to grab one or two of these. One of the more fun matchups in the league not involving either of the top two dominant sides.
Catalan derby
January 3, 2027 — Espanyol vs. Barcelona (RCDE Stadium)
April 18, 2027 — Barcelona vs. Espanyol (Camp Nou, Barcelona)
Barcelona have dominated their cross-town rivals Espanyol over the years, rendering this rivalry not quite as much of one in recent years.
The last time Barcelona were beaten by Espanyol was back in 2018 in the Copa del Rey, and they have not lost in La Liga action since 2009. This season should be no different.
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