Real Madrid vs. FC Barcelona – El Clásico, the biggest match in club football

Football Trips La Liga are defined above all by El Clásico, the duel between Real Madrid and FC Barcelona 2:1 (2:1), which was played for the 262nd time on October 26, 2025 – and of course was our Match of the Week. 

“This is a game that, without exaggeration, the whole world wants to watch,” said Barcelona idol Ivan Rakitic (37 / 16 Clásico appearances in all competitions) in an interview with BILD am SONNTAG (October 26, 2025 issue). “Even for the players at Barca and Real, this is something extraordinary. There’s an enormous rivalry between the fanbases, but also among the players – there are always little provocations and clashes. When a Clásico is coming up, you feel it as a player, also because you prepare for the match even more meticulously than usual.”

FC Barcelona: Heading to Real Madrid with four Clásico wins in a row

The biggest club football game – this time at the postmodern Estadio Santiago Bernabéu in the urban canyons of Madrid – on a glorious autumn day in the Spanish capital, with a fan choreography stretching across all stands. It doesn’t get much better than this…

Real Madrid’s coach Xabi Alonso sent all his stars onto the pitch: Kylian Mbappé as centre forward, Vinicius Junior in attack, and behind them Jude Bellingham in the number 10 role. 

FC Barcelona lined up in attack with Lamine Yamal, Marcus Rashford, and Ferran Torres (“The Other Torres”) as the central striker. Regular attackers Raphinha and Robert Lewandowski were unavailable to Barca’s German interim coach Marcus Sorg – head coach Hansi Flick was suspended. 

The Catalans had won all of their last four Clásico encounters across all competitions, including in La Liga in October 2024 – by 4:0.

The starting position – two points behind league leaders Real Madrid – put the pressure on Barcelona, as the two teams had alternated as champions over the past four years.
Penalty and dream goal from Mbappé conceded

The first attacking move brought a penalty for Real Madrid – ironically, Yamal fouled Vinicius Junior (5’). But the penalty didn’t stand after VAR review – luck for Barca. 
The second shot on goal came from Lamine Yamal, but Barcelona’s wonderkid missed wide from 15 meters on the right (9’).

Then it seemed to happen – Kylian Mbappé fired the ball with his left foot, in true “Subbuteo” style, from over 20 meters into the net (12’). But the goal was ruled out by VAR for an offside position earlier in the move – a shame for such a dream goal! 

“We want to see football, we want to see goals – benefit of the doubt to the attacker,” said former Real player Sami Khedira on DAZN about the decision. “That’s – whether Real or Barcelona – not in the spirit of football.”

After 22 minutes, it counted: Kylian Mbappé’s goal – this time beautifully set up by Jude Bellingham. The 2018 World Cup winner gave Barca’s Polish keeper Wojciech Szczesny no chance and scored his 11th goal of the season.

That El Clásico is unlike any other match could be felt during the 90 minutes – also from the fans’ reactions. 

“Los Madridistas,” as Real Madrid’s supporters are called, celebrated a throw-in won by Vinicius Junior on the sideline midway through the first half (!) like a goal. Often mocked as an “opera audience,” the Real fans were fully fired up – not only in this moment. They mercilessly booed Barca youngster Yamal with every touch of the ball. 

The question after Mbappé’s 1:0 was: Can Barca now “mbappé it together”? No! Eric Garcia (33’) missed a clear chance to equalize in front of Real goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois. 
At the other end, Vini Junior failed to convert Real’s next big chance after a pass from Mbappé, Szczesny getting a touch on it. 

Whether Luis Figo – who 25 years ago made one of the most controversial transfers ever between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid – smiled on the VIP stand at this scene, we don’t know…

First “Barca”, then Bellingham: Two goals in three minutes 

During Real’s pressure phase, Barcelona equalized: 1:1 through Fermin Lopez (38’) after a clever pass back from Marcus Rashford from the left edge of the six-yard box. It was Lopez’s third goal of the season.

Barca were now on top and missed another dangerous shot through Pedri after 41 minutes. Eduardo Camavinga managed to intercept, but there was no boredom here.
Also because Jude Bellingham quickly answered for Real: 2:1 (43’) from close range after a headed assist from Eder Militao from the right. 

Real pushed for the decider before the break, but the next Mbappé goal (45’) was again ruled out – offside. 

Goals, VAR decisions and a missed penalty!

Immediately after the break, another VAR decision. This time it was a handball scene involving Garcia, who was struck by Bellingham near the goal line – and it was up for debate. Penalty for Real – and Kylian Mbappé stepped up. 

But the Frenchman failed – Szczesny saved with one hand, an incredible scene from the Pole! 

Despite the missed penalty: with the intensity Real showed on the counter, it felt like a goal could come at any moment.

But it didn’t – Bellingham’s supposed 3:1 (69’) was ruled out for offside by Fede Valverde – no goal.

Hansi Flick watched from a glass box in the stands – surely with some relief, since his team was still in the game. 

The fact that the match stayed exciting until the end pleased both club bosses – Real’s Florentino Pérez and Barca’s powerful president Joan Laporta – in the stands. That’s also one of the unbeatable charms of El Clásico: ex-players and famous officials from both clubs always pack the stands at these matches. 

After a second yellow for Barcelona’s Pedri, tempers flared near the benches in the ninth minute of stoppage time – but that kind of rumble is also part of Clásico folklore. 

Seconds later, Real Madrid celebrated – their first Clásico victory after four straight defeats, and their first win over their archrivals this season. 

Fun fact: In the last 20 years, the winner of the first Clásico of the season has also gone on to become Spanish champion at the end of the campaign.