Barcelona 3-2 Real Madrid, Spanish Super Cup Final: Raphinha Bags Brace As Catalans Defend Crown In Jeddah

Barcelona were crowned Supercopa de Espana champions for a record-extending 16th time, as Raphinha's brace helped seal a 3-2 win over Clasico rivals Real Madrid. 

The thrilling contest in Saudi Arabia saw three goals scored in first-half stoppage time, but Raphinha's 73rd-minute winner proved to be the difference on Sunday. 

After missing an opportunity to open the scoring less than a minute earlier, Raphinha put Barcelona into a 36th-minute lead with a pinpoint shot into the bottom-right corner. 

But the Brazilian's opener sparked an avalanche of goals at the end of the first half, with Vinicius Junior's fine solo run from the left-hand side seeing him breeze past Jules Kounde and Pau Cubarsi before curling the ball beyond Joan Garcia. 

ALSO READ | Match Highlights

Robert Lewandowski then put Barcelona back in front in the fourth minute of stoppage time with a sublime dink over Thibaut Courtois, after being picked out by Pedri's fine pass. 

However, the scoring was not done there. Rodrygo's corner was met by Dean Huijsen, whose header cannoned against the crossbar. Yet, the rebound fell kindly for Gonzalo Garcia to tuck home off the woodwork, despite Frenkie de Jong's efforts on the line. 

Vinicius continued to be a threat after the break and saw an effort tipped over by Courtois, before Rodrygo forced another save from the Madrid goalkeeper just after the hour. 

Lamine Yamal then saw a sliding attempt punched away by Courtois, but just before a cooling break, Barcelona got themselves ahead for the third time in the match as Raphinha's strike deflected off Raul Asencio and into the net. 

The Blaugrana were forced to see out the final few minutes with a man less, after De Jong was sent off for a two-footed tackle on Kylian Mbappe. They were almost made to pay in stoppage time, but Alvaro Carreras and Asencio fired glorious chances straight at Garcia as Barca held on.

Data Debrief: Raphinha helps Barcelona seal Real Madrid three-peat

Ahead of the tournament, Hansi Flick said Barcelona would gain belief to win other trophies this season if they won the Supercopa de Espana, and he will hope that this victory will be a solid foundation to build on for the rest of 2026. 

The Blaugrana have now won three consecutive finals against Madrid for the first time in their history, but they had their Brazilian superstar to thank for their latest triumph. 

Indeed, Raphinha became just the second player ever to score four goals in a single edition of the Supercopa de Espana, after Artiz Aduriz in 2015, who scored all four against Barcelona during their 5-1 win on aggregate in the two-team format. 

And the latest instalment of El Clasico certainly delivered. Barcelona finished the contest with an expected goals (xG) total of 2.6 from their 16 shots compared to Madrid's 1.39 from their 12 attempts, 10 of which were on target.