The first 15 minutes of El Clasico will not be aired in Britain

Gareth Bale and Jordi Alba

The first 15 minutes of the El Clasico encounter between Real Madrid and Barcelona on October 25th will not be aired in Great Britain due to UK broadcasting rules. According to the rule, no live football can be shown between 2.45 pm and 5.15 pm, in order to ensure that spectator attendance does not dip in the Premier League game that is played at 3 pm in the afternoon.

The La Liga match, scheduled for a 5 pm kick-off at the Santiago Bernabeu, could see Luis Suarez make his debut for the Catalan giants after the end of his four-month ban imposed by FIFA for biting Giorgio Chiellini during a FIFA World Cup match.

The ruling, that has been in place since the 1960s, also affected Gareth Bale’s debut last year, just as it could affect former Liverpool star Suarez’s maiden El Clasico appearance.

The Uruguayuan, meanwhile was upbeat about his chances of starting the match.

“If you had asked me a week before I had not said. After two games with Uruguay I felt pretty good physically, better than I expected. Today I can say I’m 100 per cent.

“Starting with Barça at the Bernabeu would be special. What I want is to enjoy the Barça shirt and that is in my hands.” said the 27 year old.

The legislation had been originally implemented to protect attendances at lower-league football matches, but even fixtures being played abroad are not allowed to be aired.

Fans will, however, be able to enjoy the pre-match buildup of Swansea vs Leicester at the Liberty Stadium.