Real Madrid vs Barcelona: Who has won more Clasicos?
- Real Madrid and Barcelona are the two most successful sides in Spanish football and among the biggest in Europe
- The pair first met in 1902 and have contested more than 250 competitive matches
- Over such a long period of time, the two clubs boast remarkably similar records
With it often pitting the greatest players and teams in the world against each other, El Clasico is undoubtedly one of football's most iconic matches.
Only a fifth of all matches between these storied clubs have ended all square, with both sides able to revel in hefty victories and mourn damaging defeats.
After in excess of 250 matches spread across more than a century, which side has come out on top more often?
What is El Clasico?
El Clasico, which translates in English to 'The Classic', is the name given to any match that takes place between Barcelona and Real Madrid.
The long-standing rivalry the two clubs share is one of the biggest in football and stems from both sporting and non-sporting reasons.
They have historically held opposing political beliefs, with Real Madrid supporting Spanish nationalism and Barcelona traditionally behind Catalonian separatism, creating a thick wall of tension between the two.
This gross simplification of a complex political crossover can cast the capital club in an unflattering light. As Madrid's president Florentino Perez once fretted: "All our lives it's been Barcelona as the good guys, Madrid as the bad guys."
Yet, there are plenty of cliches that should not be blindly believed. "The Englishman who sees Madrid as Franco’s club," former Madrid winger Michel once said, "probably thinks Spanish women dress as Flamenco dancers."
That Madrid and Barcelona have almost always been the two biggest and best sides in the country, therefore always competing against each other for the biggest trophies, makes the clashes all the more fiery. Since Valencia's triumph in 2004, 17 of the last 19 La Liga titles have been one by Barcelona or Real Madrid.
Have Barcelona or Real Madrid won more Clasicos?
What makes the rivalry so great more than anything is how evenly matched the two clubs have been over the years.
They've played 255 competitive matches against one another since first meeting on a competitive stage in 1902 when Madrid's founders - two Catalan brothers ironically - set up a tournament to celebrate King Alfonso XIII. Barcelona won 3-1 in front of royalty that day but Real Madrid have been the more successful in the subsequent 12 decades, claiming 103 victories.
It's remarkably close though with Barcelona winning a century of Clasicos themselves.
Thanks in large part to their superior head-to-head record, Real Madrid have won eight more league titles than their rivals and lifted the Champions League, formerly known as the European Cup, nine more times - the two have met in the semi-finals of the competition three times with Los Blancos progressing to the final twice.
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