TV rights payments influence football economics. They fund the budgets of many clubs, especially those lower in the standings, and they shape how audiences grow when big teams play on weekends. A common question among Franjiverdes fans is this: why does Elche feature so often on Mondays?
Elche is scheduled for a Monday match at 9:00 in the morning against Mallorca, marking their fourth game in eight days if you count the midweek break. That compressed schedule makes it harder for fans to attend, both at the Martínez Valero stadium and during away trips.
La Liga chief Javier Tebas and the television operators who hold the rights to Spanish professional football, along with providers Movistar and DAZN, decide the kickoff times. Elche has consistently appeared on Mondays, a trend that seems to disadvantage the club more than others. They are by far the team with the most Monday fixtures, and several of these matches have occurred before the season reached its halfway point.
Franjiverdes began the season in late summer. Monday, August 15 fell on Benito Villamarín day in the city, with a home crowd for a match against Betis. The excitement surrounding the historic centenary season did not translate into an organized trip for fans, despite the enthusiasm on offer.
On the next matchday, Elche returned to the schedule with a Monday fixture, this time against Almería, continuing the pattern of busy weekends and midweek obligations. This Monday, August 22, the opposition was Almería again, a reminder that the calendar has been dense from the start.
The club then played four matches across a single weekend period, with the later fixtures still falling on a Monday. By the time October arrived, Elche had closed out one Monday in Vallecas against Rayo Vallecano, and another Monday was planned for Mallorca later in the autumn.
Following Elche, the team most often playing on Mondays is Almería, with three fixtures, including a match in their home venue and others away. The pattern shows that La Liga appears to favor scheduling lower division teams for non weekend slots rather than concentrating big club derbies on Saturdays and Sundays.
Other clubs such as Girona, Getafe, Cadiz, Valladolid, Osasuna, Rayo and Mallorca each had at most one Monday appearance so far, highlighting the uneven distribution across the league. Among the so-called big clubs, only Atlético Madrid, Valencia and Athletic Bilbao managed to have some Monday action, while others saved most of their meetings for the weekend or midweek slots.
There are several teams that did not play on weekends in this cycle. Title contenders Real Madrid and Barcelona, along with Sevilla, Real Sociedad, Villarreal, Celta and Espanyol, joined the mix with scheduled Monday games in different rounds. The yellow submarine, Villarreal, reserved a Monday slot against Osasuna, while Celta faced Getafe in Balaídos on matchday eleven. By the ninth matchday, most fixtures spread across the week, not just the weekend, offered a steady stream of weekday football.
Elche also faced Real Madrid in a highly anticipated midweek match. The clash was scheduled for a Wednesday evening, drawing many fans to the stadium for a standout event in the season. The date captured attention because it offered a rare weekday showcase for one of Spain’s top clubs.
Here is a snapshot of the Monday schedule by club, reflecting the observed pattern across the league: Elche has appeared four times, followed by Almería with three, Cadiz with one, and several other clubs with one or zero Monday appearances. Atlético Madrid, Girona, Getafe, Athletic Bilbao, Valencia, Valladolid, Rayo Vallecano, Mallorca, Real Madrid, Barcelona, Espanyol, Getafe, and others show varying levels of Monday activity, illustrating how the calendar interplays with travel, fatigue, and fan engagement.
In sum, Monday fixtures among La Liga teams reveal a scheduling philosophy that often places less prominent clubs in weekday slots while preserving weekends for the marquee matchups. For Elche and similar clubs, this pattern creates challenges in maintaining consistent fan attendance and performing with the same rhythm as those who play the bulk of their games on weekends. The season’s calendar continues to unfold, with midweek tests and weekend showcases shaping the story of each club and its supporters.