Barcelona vs Real Madrid: Complete head-to-head record in El Clasico
- Barcelona and Real Madrid contest one of the fiercest rivalries in world football
- The two La Liga giants have long battled for supremacy in Spain and Europe
- Los Blancos marginally ahead of Blaugrana for H2H wins in El Clasico
It's rarely a dull occasion when Spain's two premier forces meet on the football pitch.
Barcelona and Real Madrid have been entwined in a rivalry so gripping that it is simply known as El Clasico - every time they meet it's a classic.
Both clubs find themselves fighting for the top titles in Spain and on the continent every single season, with absolutely no love lost between these two giants of the game.
Here are the statistics and significance of a rivalry which needs little introduction.
El Clasico memorable meetings
Origins of El Clasico
As so many of football's fiercest derbies are, the rivalry between Barcelona and Real Madrid is entrenched in politics. It traces back to the time of the Spanish Civil War, with the rivalry intensifying following the conclusion of World War II in 1945.
Barcelona is located in Catalonia, a republican heartland during the civil war, while Real are, of course, the pride and joy of the Spanish capital. They grew to embody General Francisco Franco's dictatorship; a regime Catalonians resented deeply.
Franco, like Miguel Primo de Rivera before him, sought to homogenise the Spanish state and thus attempted to restrict all regional languages and identities in Spain during his lengthy leadership, including Catalonian - hence the resentment.
So, while Real grew to encapsulate Spain's ruling elite, Barcelona, who developed their motto 'Mes que un club' (More than a club), aligned strongly with Catalan nationalism. Politically, the two clubs were once poles apart with Barcelona and Real Madrid seen to represent each side of the civil war divide still today.
The success of both teams on the pitch only added to the rivalry, and the contest has developed into an unmissable fixture in the 21st century.
The world's best players want to compete in El Clasico, and there was a period during José Mourinho's stint in Madrid where the entire planet would stand still while Pep Guardiola's Barcelona and José's Real went at it.
El Clasico: Complete head-to-head record
Competition | Matches played | Real Madrid wins | Barcelona wins | Draws | Real Madrid goals scored | Barcelona goals scored |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
La Liga | 188 | 79 | 74 | 35 | 301 | 299 |
Copa de la Coronacion | 1 | 0 | 1 | 0 | 1 | 3 |
Copa del Rey | 38 | 13 | 17 | 8 | 70 | 71 |
Copa de la Liga | 6 | 0 | 2 | 4 | 8 | 13 |
Supercopa de Espana | 18 | 11 | 5 | 2 | 41 | 25 |
Champions League | 8 | 3 | 2 | 3 | 13 | 10 |
Total | 259 | 108 | 100 | 51 | 439 | 419 |
Which players have won the most Clasicos?
Barcelona's Sergio Busquets claimed the record from Real Madrid's Paco Gento during his final season in Catalonia, eventually finishing with 23 victories over the club's fearsome rivals, two more than his legendary predecessor.
Gento spent 18 years at Real between 1953 and 1971, making 427 appearances for the club and winning a boatload of honours. The Spaniard lifted 12 La Liga titles and won six European Cups. His significance to one of the greatest club sides of all time means Gento is regarded as one of the greatest Spanish footballers of all time.
Busquets' genius is better known to a modern audience. The former Barcelona captain will be remembered as a generation-defining holding midfielder who operated as the metronomic fulcrum in Pep Guardiola's mesmeric Barcelona sides of 2008/09 and 2010/11.
El Clasico leading goalscorers
Here are the ten leading goalscorers in El Clasico history:
Rank | Player | Team | Goals |
|---|---|---|---|
1. | Lionel Messi | Barcelona | 26 |
2= | Alfredo Di Stefano | Real Madrid | 18 |
2= | Cristiano Ronaldo | Real Madrid | 18 |
3. | Karim Benzema | Real Madrid | 16 |
4. | Raul | Real Madrid | 15 |
6= | Cesar | Barcelona | 14 |
6= | Francisco Gento | Real Madrid | 14 |
6= | Ferenc Puskas | Real Madrid | 14 |
9. | Santillana | Real Madrid | 12 |
10. | Luis Suarez | Barcelona | 11 |
El Clasico most hat-tricks
Only 27 hat-tricks have been scored in El Clasico history. The first was netted by Santiago Bernabeu, after whom Madrid's stadium is now named, in 1916 and Karim Benzema bagged the most recent in 2023.
Four players have scored multiple hat-tricks in this fixture, including the aforementioned Bernabeu. His second came in a quite remarkable 6-6 draw which saw two other players (Luis Belaunde and Paulino Alcantara) score three times.
Real's Jaime Lazcano and Ferenc Puskas each bagged two Clasico hat-tricks, while Lionel Messi registered two for Barcelona seven years apart.
El Clasico records
Team
- Biggest winning margin: Real Madrid 11-1 Barcelona - Copa del Rey (19 June 1943)
- Most consecutive wins: Real Madrid - 7 (22 April 1962 - 28 February 1965)
- Longest undefeated run: Real Madrid - 8 (3 March 2001 - 6 December 2003)
Player
- Most appearances: Sergio Busquets - 48
- Most assists: Lionel Messi - 14
- Most assists in one match: Xavi - 4 (2 May 2009, La Liga)
- Most yellow cards: Sergio Ramos - 22
- Most red cards: Sergio Ramos - 5
- Most clean sheets: Victor Valdes - 7
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