Why Real Madrid are furious at how the season is going

Until the Intercontinental Cup, Madrid had only played one game away from home, before 9pm.Late nights, the same old routine. This is Real Madrid’s catchphrase every time they board a plane to play outside the capital. Week after week, the pattern persists. Within the club, questions about the schedule are now met with sarcasm: “At 9 p.m., what else could it be?”

And, more often than not, they’re right. Of the13 away games the team has played so far this season, only two have started before 9 p.m.—and even those come with caveats. One was in Butarque, and the other during the Intercontinental Cup. Put simply: until the Intercontinental Cup,Madrid had not played a single away game outside Madrid before 9 p.m.

Though the tone has taken on a humorous edge, it’s essentially fuelled by irony.Beneath the humour lies growing frustration—both within the squad and the club as a whole.

Late-night matches and athlete burnout

Elite sports at night come withhidden coststhat aren’t widely understood. A few years ago, tennis player Alexander Zverev spoke out against late-night tournaments, saying:

“An athlete finishes, then has to cycle, do physiotherapy, eat dinner, and finally try to sleep while still carrying the tension of competition. Sometimes,you don’t get to bed until 4 a.m.”

This sentimentresonates deeply within football, though players have yet to publicly raise their voices. Quietly, however, Real Madrid are starting to consider doing so.

Madrid’s gruelling schedule

Here’s a breakdown ofReal Madrid’s away gamesthis season and their local kickoff times:

“It’s not normal”

“We’re fed up,” an insider explains. “Every time we play an away game, we don’t get home until 3 a.m.—if we’re lucky. And the next day, we’re expected to train! It’s hard enough to rest with such a packed schedule, but these late kickoffs make itnearly impossible.”

The exhaustion is shared by the players. Adjusting to a 9 p.m. schedule means interrupted sleep and poor recovery. The problem has reached such a level that CarloAncelotti has reduced the intensity of trainingsessions following late-night matches to help the squad cope.

Little hope for change

For now, there’sno sign of the situation improving. The first game of 2025, at Mestalla, is also scheduled for 9 p.m.—business as usual. However, there is a small reprieve in the Copa del Rey: the game against Deportiva Minera will start at 7 p.m. A rarity worth celebrating.

By then, it will have been 145 days since the competition began, marking Madrid’s first game outside the capital before 8 p.m. But the feeling is clear: little will change in LaLiga. Pessimism prevails for the self-proclaimed “lords of the night.” If you visit their stadium, bet on a 9 p.m. kickoff. The margin for error is slim. It’s the other unwritten law of Real Madrid.