1 week Ago By Vijievan Jeevathayalan
Real Madrid are the most successful team in European football, winning the UEFA Champions League a record 15 times. They have also won the UEFA Cup, now known as the UEFA Europa League, twice, and have lifted the UEFA Super Cup on six occasions. Domestically, Los Blancos have won La Liga more than any other club.
Last season's title victory was the club's 36th, putting them nine clear of their Catalan rivals, Barcelona. Despite their success, Real Madrid have still had some humbling defeats in their 122-year history. This includes losses in the El Clasico and in the Champions League against some of the biggest clubs on the continent.
Indeed, Carlo Ancelotti's side suffered a rather embarrassing 3-0 defeat to Arsenal in the first leg of their Champions League quarter-final clash in this 2024/2025 season, but it is still nowhere near their worst. Here is the full list of Real Madrid's 10 worst-ever defeats. Stage of competition: Defeats in important European matches or league games with significance in terms of the title.
Goals conceded: The number of goals conceded and margin of defeat. 10 Worst Defeats in Real Madrid History Rank Match Date Competition 1 Espanyol 8-1 Real Madrid 5th March 1931 La Liga 2 Valencia 6-0 Real Madrid 9th June 1999 Copa del Rey Semi-Finals 1st Leg 3 Kaiserslautern 5-0 Real Madrid 17th March 1982 UEFA Cup Quarter-Finals 2nd Leg 4 Benfica 5-1 Real Madrid 24th February 1965 European Cup Quarter-Finals 1st Leg 5 Hamburger SV 5-1 Real Madrid 23rd April 1980 European Cup Semi-Finals 1st Leg 6 Barcelona 5-0 Real Madrid 29th November 2010 La Liga 7 AC Milan 5-0 Real Madrid 19th April 1989 European Cup Semi-Finals 2nd Leg 8 Real Madrid 0-6 Athletic Bilbao 18th January 1931 La Liga 9 Real Zaragoza 6-1 Real Madrid 8th February 2006 Copa del Rey Semi-Finals 1st Leg 10 Real Madrid 2-6 Barcelona 2nd May 2009 La Liga 10 Real Madrid 2-6 Barcelona A game where Thierry Henry returned to the Santiago Bernabeu to silence the home crowd once more after his stunning goal in Arsenal's 1-0 win over Real Madrid a few years prior, Los Blancos simply could not handle the attacking threat of Barcelona in May 2009. Despite taking the lead through Gonzalo Higuain, Barcelona simply ran away with it with a brace from Henry and Lionel Messi each.
Centre-back duo Carles Puyol and Gerard Pique also found themselves on the score-sheet as Barcelona ran riot and left the Bernabeu stunned, and given the context of the game - both were challenging for the La Liga title that year with just a few games remaining - this was a huge win. 9 Real Zaragoza 6-1 Real Madrid Despite boasting a star-studded line-up featuring the likes of Ronaldo, David Beckham, Julio Baptista and Roberto Carlos, Real Madrid succumbed to their heaviest defeat since they lost 6-0 to Valencia seven years earlier. With Barcelona having moved 10 points clear in the race for the La Liga title, all eyes were on Madrid's performances in the Copa del Rey semi-final first leg in their bid to at least end the season with a trophy.
Instead, Diego Milito smashed in four goals - including a first-half hat-trick - that completely obliterated the away side and capped off what would be a rather miserable season for the Galacticos. 8 Real Madrid 0-6 Athletic Bilbao In what would be a rather horrendous season - arguably the most embarrassing in Real Madrid history - Los Blancos would suffer their worst ever defeat at the time (although that record would be broken less than two months later). Managed by Lippo Hertzka, Madrid would fall behind by four goals to nil at the break, before two more were added in the second-half to hand the home side a resounding defeat.
Hertzka however would clearly inspire a turnaround at the Bernabeu though, with the side going on to achieve an unbeaten season just the following year to clinch the La Liga title in extraordinary fashion. 7 AC Milan 5-0 Real Madrid After a 1-1 draw at the Santiago Bernabeu in the semi-finals of the 1988/89 European Cup, AC Milan and Real returned to the San Siro with the tie evenly poised. The Italian side dominated the early stages of the game, and after 18 minutes, Carlo Ancelotti slotted the ball past Francisco Buyo to put them ahead.
Seven minutes later, Frank Rijkaard headed home a Mauro Tassotti corner to double Milan's advantage. The Rossoneri pressed home their advantage on the stroke of half-time, with Roberto Donadoni delivering an inch-perfect cross from the left-hand side to Ruud Gullit, who made it 3-0. After the interval, Milan continued to dominate all aspects of the game.
Marco van Basten and Donadoni scored in the 49th and 59th minutes, respectively, to secure a famous win for Arrigo Sacchi's side against the Spanish giants. Milan went on to win the competition for the third time, beating Steaua Bucuresti 4-0 in the final. 6 Barcelona 5-0 Real Madrid Barcelona have beaten Real Madrid 5-0 twice since 1994.
The latest of these was in November 2010, when Pep Guardiola and Jose Mourinho were the respective managers. Going into the game, Los Blancos were top of La Liga, having picked up 32 points from a possible 36 in their first 12 matches. Their next test was a trip to the Camp Nou, with the Catalan side knowing that a win would lift them ahead of Mourinho's side.
Ten minutes into El Clasico, Xavi opened the scoring after lobbing the ball over the helpless Iker Casillas. They doubled their lead eight minutes later as Pedro tapped in a perfectly weighted cross from David Villa. Tempers flared throughout the half with Cristiano Ronaldo pushing Guardiola after the second goal, as the Spanish manager threw the ball away when Real had won a foul.
As Mourinho's side looked to get back into the game, Barcelona blew them away with a quickfire double by David Villa in the second half. In stoppage time, Jeffren Suarez made it five, making it one of the biggest wins in El Clasico history . Barcelona thrashed Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu 4-0 on 26th October 2024 to deliver one of the biggest wins in El Clasico history.
5 Hamburger SV 5-1 Real Madrid Real Madrid beat Hamburger SV 2-0 in the first leg of the 1979/80 European Cup semi-final. They went to Germany as the overwhelming favourites to book their place in the final of Europe's most prestigious competition for the ninth time. Their opponents had other ideas, though, and levelled the tie after only 17 minutes with goals from Manfred Kaltz and Horst Hrubesch.
Real responded through Laurie Cunningham to halve the deficit on the night, but Hamburg pushed ahead once more. Kaltz and Hrubesch both scored again before the break, putting them 4-3 up on aggregate. Real pushed for the leveller in the second half, which was much more tightly contested, but were unable to find a way past Rudi Kargus.
Vicente del Bosque was dismissed in the 84th minute, though, and in the 90th minute, Caspar Memering booked Hamburg's place in the final. 4 Benfica 5-1 Real Madrid The European Cup was formed in 1955, and in the first seven editions of the competition, Real Madrid and Benfica were the only two teams to win it. AC Milan and Inter Milan broke their dominance in 1963 and 1964, respectively, but the Portuguese and Spanish giants were still renowned as one of the best teams in European football.
They were drawn against each other in the quarter-finals of the 1964/65 European Cup, and many were expecting an evenly matched affair. This was not how it transpired, though, as Benfica raced into a three-goal lead after only 25 minutes. Amancio pulled one back for Real in the second half, but Antonio Simoes and Mario Coluna scored late on to establish a 5-1 lead ahead of the second leg in Spain.
Los Blancos won the second leg 2-1, but the damage was done in Lisbon. The Spanish side didn't let the defeat in Lisbon linger for too long, as they bounced back to win their sixth European Cup title in the following campaign. 3 Kaiserslautern 5-0 Real Madrid After finishing second in the 1980/81 La Liga season, Real Madrid were entered into the UEFA Cup for the 1981/82 campaign.
They saw off Tatabanya from Hungary, Carl Zeiss Jena from Germany, and Rapid Wien from Austria before they were drawn against Kaiserslautern in the quarter-finals. Real won the first leg 3-1, thanks to goals from Cunningham, Francisco Garcia Hernandez, and Juanito. Unsurprisingly, they were the favourites to qualify for the last four after their stellar display at the Bernabeu.
Kaiserslautern dominated the second leg in Germany, though, establishing a 2-0 lead after only 17 minutes. Second half goals from Hans Bongartz, Norbert Eilenfeldt, and Reiner Geye secured a 5-0 win for the German side, which remains one of the most humiliating defeats for Real in a European competition. One of the officials in charge of the Ballon d'Or award has revealed that the number of Real Madrid players nominated for the award will have split the votes and is ultimately what cost Vinicius Jr the prize.
The 2024 Ballon d'Or ceremony is officially in the books and it wasn't without its controversy as Rodri won the iconic award over the Brazilian. Many have asked how Rodri won over the favourite and answers have come which will concern Real Madrid players hopeful of winning the award next. 2 Valencia 6-0 Real Madrid Real Madrid were drawn against Valencia in the semi-finals of the 1998/99 Copa del Rey.
Los Ches were sixth in La Liga outside the Champions League places, while Real were adrift of Barcelona in second. Claudio Ranieri's team took control of the match in the early stages and went 1-0 ahead after a Claudio Lopez free-kick in the 19th minute. Fernando Redondo was then sent off seven minutes later, and Valencia made their numerical advantage count.
Goals from Alain Roche and Goran Vlaovic established a 4-0 lead at the break. Real tried to stay in the tie and keep the scoreline respectable in the second half, but Miguel Angle Angulo and Gaizka Mendieta added further goals to win the match 6-0 . It remains the biggest win for Valencia against Real, and despite losing the return leg at the Bernabeu 2-1, they beat Atletico Madrid in the final to lift the trophy.
1 Espanyol 8-1 Real Madrid Real Madrid's heaviest defeat in their history came on 5th March 1930 when they lost 8-1 to Espanyol in La Liga. Earlier in the season, Real had lost 4-2 at home to Espanyol in an end-to-end affair. This time, it was much more one-sided, with the Catalan side establishing a 3-1 lead at the interval.
Gaspar Rubio scored for Los Blancos after 19 minutes, but this was one of very few high points in a dismal day for Real. In the second half, Espanyol scored five goals through Ricardo Gallart, Martin Vantolra, Jose Padron, and Pere Sole. Ironically, the club's second-heaviest defeat came against the same opponents 20 years later, as they succumbed to a 7-1 loss.
Heaviest Defeats in Real Madrid History Rank Match Date Competition 1 RCD Espanyol 8-1 Real Madrid 5th March 1930 La Liga 2 RCD Espanyol 7-1 Real Madrid 31st December 1950 La Liga 3 Real Oviedo CF 7-1 Real Madrid 21st December 1947 La Liga 4 Valencia 6-0 Real Madrid 9th June 1999 Copa del Rey Semi-Finals 1st Leg 5 Malaga 6-0 Real Madrid 15th March 1953 La Liga Information gathered from Transfermarkt and Valencia FC (Correct as of 10/04/2025).
