WELCOME TO THE MANUEL MARTÍNEZ VALERO STADIUM!!! The beautiful home of Elche is the site of Barcelona’s opening match of the season as the Blaugrana kick off their La Liga title defense away from home against an attack-minded team that will test the reigning back-to-back champions on their league debut. This should be all kinds of fun, and you’re welcome to join us to follow and comment all the action. Vamos!
Starting XI: Joan; Eric, Christensen, Martín, Espart; Fermín, Bernal, Gavi; Adeyemi, Yamal, Raphinha (4-3-3)
Substitutes: Szczesny (GK), Aller (GK), Cubarsí, Cortés, Kounde, Cancelo, Pesquer, Fariñas, Pedri, Olmo, Gordon, Hamza
Starting XI: Dituro; Affengruber, Redondo, Chust,; Sangaré, Aguado, Villar, Morente, Valera; Houary, Niño (3-5-2)
Substitutes: Iturbe (GK), Bigas, Ponce, Buonanotte, Josan, Neto, Cepeda, Diang, Barzic, Padilla, Umaru, Morcillo
Competition/Round: 2026-27 La Liga, Matchday 2
Date/Time: Sunday, August 23, 2026, 9.30pm CET/WAT (Barcelona), 8.30pm BST/WAT (UK & Nigeria), 3.30pm ET, 12.30pm PT (USA), 1am IST (India, Monday)
Venue: Estadio Manuel Martínez Valero, Elche, Spain
Referee: Alejandro Quintero González
VAR: Guillermo Cuadra Fernández
On TV: ABC (USA), Premier Sports 1 (UK), SuperSport (Nigeria), Movistar (Spain), others
Online: ESPN+ (USA), Premier Sports Player (UK), FanCode (India), Movistar+ (Spain), others
We don’t have a lot of rules here, but there are a few things to keep in mind when joining our matchday threads:
Even if the referee sucks or we lose the game, watch the swearing. It’s just unnecessary. Also, don’t discuss illegal streaming links. Those who do it will be warned, and those who post links will be instantly banned. Finally, be nice to each other. This is a Barcelona community and we don’t need to offend one another.
Have fun with the game! Forever and ever, no matter the competition, VISCA EL BARÇA!