Ahhh thanks for this GHG. I’d always thought the rule meant that the Spanish Civil War kept playing out once the Germans and USSR were at war, but that once the war ended, the winning side would be automatically aligned.
Interesting, that definitely changes things in my thinking of the game! It probably behooves the Axis to keep the war going for as long as possible to have them automatically join later. Though the flip side is no victory points for winning the SCW.
Thanks for clarifying there!