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Real Madrid Club de Fútbol

Association football club in Madrid, Spain

Real Madrid Club de Fútbol (Spanish pronunciation: [reˈal maˈðɾið ˈkluβ ðe ˈfuðβol] ) is a Spanish professional association football club based in Madrid. The club competes in La Liga, the top tier of Spanish football. Founded in 1902 as Madrid Football Club, the club has traditionally worn a white home kit. The honorific title 'Real' is Spanish for "Royal" and was bestowed by Alfonso XIII in 1920. Real Madrid have played their home matches in the Bernabéu since 1947. Unlike most European sporting clubs, Real Madrid's members have owned and operated the club throughout its history. The club is one of the most widely supported in the world and the most followed sports club across social media. It was estimated to be worth $6.6 billion in 2024, making it the world's most valuable football club. In 2024, it became the first football club to make €1 billion ($1.08bn) in revenue. The club anthem is the "Hala Madrid y nada más". Real Madrid is one of the most successful football clubs in the world and the most decorated club in Europe. In Spanish domestic football, the club has won 71 trophies; a record 36 La Liga titles, 20 Copa del Rey, 13 Supercopa de España, a Copa Eva Duarte and a Copa de la Liga. In International football, Real Madrid have won a record 35 trophies: a record 15 European Cup/UEFA Champions League titles, a record six UEFA Super Cups, two UEFA Cups, a joint-record two Latin Cups, a record one Iberoamerican Cup, and a record nine world championships. Madrid has been ranked joint first a record number of times in the IFFHS Club World Ranking. In UEFA's club ranking, Madrid ranks first in the all-time club ranking. As one of the three founding members of La Liga never relegated from the top division along with Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao, Real Madrid has many long-standing rivalries, most notably El Clásico with Barcelona and El Derbi Madrileño with Atlético Madrid. The club established itself as a major force in Spanish and European football during the 1950s and 60s, winning five consecutive and six overall European Cups. This success was replicated on the domestic front, with Madrid winning 12 league titles in 16 years. This team, which included Alfredo Di Stéfano, Ferenc Puskás, Paco Gento and Raymond Kopa, is considered by some in the sport to be the greatest of all time. Real Madrid is known for its Galácticos policy, which involves signing the world's best players, such as Ronaldo, Zinedine Zidane and David Beckham to create a superstar team. In 2009, Madrid signed Cristiano Ronaldo for a record-breaking £80 million (€94 million) from Manchester United; he became the club's and history's all-time top goal-scorer. In addition to signing star players, Real Madrid develops homegrown talent through its academy, La Fábrica, which has produced notable graduates such as Raúl, Iker Casillas, and Dani Carvajal, and has supplied the highest number of players to Europe's top five leagues. Real Madrid was recognized as the greatest football club of the 20th century, receiving the FIFA Centennial Order of Merit in 2004. Real Madrid has the highest number of participations in the European Cup/UEFA Champions League (55), a tournament in which they hold the records for most wins, draws and goals scored. Real Madrid is the only club to have won three consecutive titles in the European Cup/UEFA Champions League twice, achieving this in 1956-58 and 2016-18. In 2024, they won a record-extending 15th Champions League title (the sixth in eleven seasons), recognized as such by Guinness World Records. Real Madrid is the first club across all Europe's top-five leagues to win 100 trophies in all competitions. As of May 2026, Real Madrid are ranked 2nd in UEFA club rankings, and first over 2013–23 coefficient.