Barcelona and Real Madrid meet for the first time this season on Sunday, with Kylian Mbappe and Lamine Yamal set to renew their contest in the Clasico just a day before the Ballon d’Or is awarded.
The two forwards are among the candidates for the prize, but recent meetings between the Spanish rivals suggest Barcelona have had the upper hand since Mbappe joined Real Madrid in the summer of 2024.
The clubs have faced each other seven times in all competitions since then, with Mbappe featuring in six of those matches. Barcelona have won six, while Real Madrid have recorded just one victory.
Barcelona’s wins began with a 4-0 La Liga success on 26 October 2024. They followed that with a 5-2 victory in the Spanish Super Cup on 12 January 2025, before beating Real Madrid 3-2 in the Copa del Rey final on 26 April.
The Catalan side then prevailed 4-3 in the league on 11 May 2025. Their next two victories came in the Spanish Super Cup final, where they won 3-2 on 11 January 2026, and in La Liga, with a 2-0 result on 10 May 2026.
Real Madrid’s only success in that sequence came in the league on 26 October 2025, when they won 2-1.
Mbappe, however, has enjoyed the stronger individual record in those encounters. The France striker has scored six goals against Barcelona during the period, including a hat-trick in May 2025.
Yamal has scored three times in the same fixtures, although the Spain winger provided two assists in the Copa del Rey final.
That contrast gives Mbappe the statistical advantage despite Barcelona’s dominance in the results. The Frenchman may nevertheless be willing to surrender that personal record for victory in Sunday’s match, with Real Madrid seeking to improve their record against their rivals.
Yamal also has a recent advantage over Mbappe on the international stage. The Barcelona player has outperformed the Real Madrid forward in each of the past three meetings between Spain and France.
Sunday’s fixture, part of the 10th round of La Liga, therefore brings together two players competing for individual recognition as well as two clubs with sharply contrasting records in their recent head-to-head meetings.
