The Madrid Derby

The two clubs were founded in 1903 and 1902 respectively, they met for the first time in a competitive match on December 2 1906 and the rivalry has burned fiercely ever since Los Blancos’ 2-1 victory over Los Colchoneros in the Madrid Championship. In terms of the origins of the rivalry, it actually stems from far away, the 1903 Copa del Rey final was held in Madrid and saw Sociedad Madrid Football Club face Athletic Club. The Madrid side took a 2-0 lead but ultimately lost 3-2, such was the joy of the Athletic Club supporters based in Madrid, a Madrid branch of the club was founded.

During the early years of both clubs, the rivalry was played exclusively in the Central Regional Championship, only the winner would qualify for the Spanish Championship. For Los Blancos, their fiercest rival had always been Atleti, something Alfredo Di Stefano was acutely aware of: “In my time, the rival was Atletico, the one we wanted to beat at all costs because they were our neighbour. Losing to our neighbour meant that for the next week their fans laughed at us, in the office, in the bar, in the street,” he explained.

The feeling was reciprocated within the Los Rojiblancos camp as Adrian Escudero made clear during his time at the Estadio Metropolitano de Madrid: “During my Atletico career, if you lost a derby then you had to hide. People pointed at you and mocked you, beating Real Madrid was more special than winning any other match.”

History has not been overly kind to Los Colchoneros supporters; their fiercest rivals have been the dominant team for the duration of the rivalry. Over 279 matches, the current Spanish champions have won 146 of those, there have only been 70 victories for Diego Simeone’s team. Real Madrid’s 98 trophies also eclipse the 31 won by their city rivals.

Saturday’s clash will be the first Madrid derby to be played in the newly constructed Estadio Wanda Metropolitano. Despite the incredible individual players to have been at the club, for years it seemed as though Atleti simply could not defeat Los Blancos. Up until Simeone arrived as coach this feeling would remain, since then it has been a totally different story with the Argentine making his team competitive.

This apparent golden age for the club has seen them lift a LaLiga title and reach two Champions League finals, both of which they have lost to Real Madrid, a pain that will not ease quickly.

Throughout history there have been around 40 players who have represented both clubs, Theo Hernandez is the latest yet there have been some iconic names such as Luis Aragones, although he never played a competitive match for Real Madrid.

Those who have worn the colours of both teams include: