12th January 2026
January 12 – Barcelona’s latest Super Cup success came once again far from home, edging Real Madrid 3-2 in Jeddah to retain a trophy that has become as much a Saudi Arabian event as a Spanish one.
Played at the King Abdullah Sports City, the final delivered the familiar chaos of a Clásico, even if the setting now feels increasingly detached from the domestic calendar it belongs to.
It is the sixth time in the last seven years the Spanish have played their Super Cup in Saudi, the first being in 2020 seeing the introduction of the four team, semi-final and final format. Barcelona and Real Madrid have each won three times in Saudi and in each of the last four seasons have played each other in the final.
Raphinha opened the scoring midway through the first half for Barca, before an unruly spell of stoppage-time football saw Vinícius Júnior and Robert Lewandowski trade goals either side of the interval, with Gonzalo García adding a third during a sequence that left Barcelona furious about the delay of the half-time whistle – bringing the score from 1-0 to 2-2 in the space of five minutes.
The winning moment came in the 73rd minute when Raphinha’s floated effort drifted beyond Courtois’ reach, settling a contest which could have gone either way.
The rhythm felt like it was a ‘team vs individuals’ scenario – Madrid propelled by star power and individual skill whilst Barcelona were a product of teamwork and chemistry.
A late red card for Frenkie de Jong, earned via a studs-up challenge on Kylian Mbappe, made closing the game a little harder than expected, but Barcelona held on to secure a 16th Super Cup, and a second consecutive title.
The RFEF and local organisers have now extended the hosting deal through to 2029, though the Gulf nation are hosting next year’s Asian Cup – which clashes with Spanish football’s scheduling of the tournament – and has led to an alternative location in the Middle East being sought by the RFEF.
For the federation, the tournament has become a reliable source of overseas revenue and global exposure – at the cost of an annual mid-season disruption, parachuted into the calendar between domestic and European commitments for players already unsettled by a crowded calendar.
Contact the writer of this story, Harry Ewing, at [moc.l1768227472labto1768227472ofdlr1768227472owedi1768227472sni@g1768227472niwe.1768227472yrrah1768227472](javascript:;)