RESOLVING THE LEDGER
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The format of the season and the league campaign will change this year . It is not a landmark change like the unprecedented interruption for the winter World Cup in Qatar in November 2022, but it is nevertheless a significant one. In recent seasons, August has effectively served as an extension of pre-season, with just two league matches before the first international break. Results and performances have always mattered, but they often felt like an opening chapter, with the campaign only truly gathering momentum once club football resumed in mid-September. This season, however, the pace will be very different. From Torino v AC Milan on 23 August to AC Milan v Lecce on 20 September , the Rossoneri will play five Serie A matches before the first international break, meaning the early games will give real shape to the early league table.
The change is the result of a revised international calendar . FIFA has introduced an extended international window in September , combining the previous September and October breaks into a single block in an effort to reduce the physical demands placed on players. From the 2026/27 season onwards, domestic competitions such as Serie A will pause for one extended international break of around three weeks, including a 16-day FIFA window. The new format is designed to deliver several benefits, from reducing long-haul travel to allowing international fixtures to be played within a single, less fragmented period . Once the four international fixtures have been completed, clubs will return to domestic and European competition without the additional interruption that, until now, has traditionally come in October.
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