2026 first title + revenge! Barça beats Real Madrid 3-2 to defend the Supercopa, with Raphinha scoring twice and De Jong sent off directly

At 3 a.m. Beijing time on January 12, the Spanish Super Cup final began, taking place in Saudi Arabia.

In the first half, after Raphinha missed a one-on-one chance, he broke the deadlock; Vinícius equalized with a solo run, Lewandowski put Barça ahead again, Gonzalo García leveled once more, and three goals were scored during stoppage time, ending the half 2-2; in the second half, Raphinha scored his second goal to restore Barça’s lead, Real Madrid failed to equalize again, and De Jong received a straight red card.

In the end, Barça defeated Real Madrid 3-2, successfully defending the Supercopa and avenging their earlier 1-2 defeat in the first La Liga match this season.

Barça vs Real Madrid: Flick deployed a 4-3-3 with Yamal, Lewandowski, and Raphinha forming the front three; Fermin, De Jong, and Pedri made up the midfield trio; Koundé, Kuby, García, and Balde formed the back four; Joan García guarded the goal, with a starting lineup valued at €809 million; Alonso set up a 4-4-2 with Gonzalo García and Vinícius as forwards; Rodrigo, Camavinga, Bellingham, and Valverde comprised the midfield four; Carreras, Heison, Tchouaméni, and Raúl Asensio made up the defense; Courtois was goalkeeper, with a starting lineup worth €808 million.

This match followed the usual pattern of the Spanish derby: Barça controlled possession while Real Madrid focused on counterattacks.Barça held 68% possession, had 16 shots—4 more than Real Madrid—but only 7 were on target, 3 fewer than Real; the final score was 3-2.For Barça, Raphinha was like a war god, scoring twice with great efficiency; Lewandowski matched his performance, while Fermin and Pedri provided assists; for Real Madrid, Vinícius impressed with a solo goal, Gonzalo García, starting instead of Mbappé, also scored, but Mbappé was ineffective off the bench; despite Alonso setting up the team as fans wished, Real lost 2-3 to Barça and missed out on the title. This perhaps reflects the current true strength of Barça and Real Madrid, with Alonso unable to turn things around tactically. Barça successfully defended the Supercopa and avenged their loss, while Real Madrid lost the title—continuing the trend of no trophies this season from Ancelotti to Alonso.