El Clasico: History, when, where and how to watch Real Madrid v Barcelona

It is the biggest game in Spanish and, arguably, European football and will have fans glued to their screens across the world.

Here is everything you need to know about the clash between Barcelona and Real Madrid, known as El Clasico.

The two will come to a head for the 188th La Liga encounter on Sunday 21st April, with all the action available on our Live Streaming Service from 20:00 GMT.

Their last meeting came in January in the Spanish Super Cup and Los Blancos made it two wins from two encounters this season in emphatic style as Vinicius Junior scored a first-half hat-trick in a 4-1 thrashing at the KSU Stadium, with Barcelona’s Robert Lewandowski and Real's Rodrygo also on the scoresheet.

Real also won this season's reverse league clash between the two sides in October 2023, with two goals from Jude Bellingham, including a 92nd-minute winner, sealing a 2-1 victory at Barcelona's temporary Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys home after Ilkay Gundogan had given the hosts an early lead.

El Clasico history

This fixture is deeply embedded into Spanish culture with the capital being seen as the heart of Spain, with Real Madrid having links to the royal family, while Barcelona is viewed as the heartland of the Catalan people.

The football action becomes the embodiment of that and games are always keenly contested, played out in front of massive attendances at either the Bernabeu, the Camp Nou or for this season, the Estadi Olimpic Lluis Companys - Barca's temporary home.

What does El Clasico mean?

The Spanish term 'El Clasico' directly translates as 'The Classic' in English, with matches between Real Madrid and Barcelona widely viewed as the pinnacle of Spanish football.

El Clasico head-to-head record

There have been 256 meetings in both league and cup competitions between these bitter rivals, spanning six separate tournaments and dating back to their first meeting in 1902 - with Barca securing a 3-1 win in the Copa de la Coronación.

Real Madrid currently edge the head-to-head with 104 wins to Barcelona’s 100, while 52 meetings have ended all square.

El Clasico biggest win

The highest scoring victory for Real was an 11-1 success in the Spanish Cup in 1943, while Barcelona's biggest win also came in a cup competition in 1957 when they claimed a 7-2 victory.

That was the first of 10 occasions when the match has been settled by a five-goal margin, the latest of which came in 2010 when Barcelona won 5-0 at Camp Nou.

The highest scoring draw in an El Clasico match came back in April 1916, when the two teams played out a 6-6 draw in the Copa del Rey.

Players who played for both Real Madrid and Barcelona

Luis Figo, Brazilian striker Ronaldo, Michael Laudrup, Luis Enrique, Bernd Schuster, Gheorghe Hagi and Robert Prosinecki are all high-profile players who have plied their trade for Barcelona and Real Madrid.

In the late 1950s, both clubs claimed they had signed Argentinian forward Alfredo di Stefano after a players' strike in his homeland confused his contract situation.

A FIFA enquiry resolved that Di Stefano would have to play for each club in alternate seasons and they would both own him, but Barcelona refused and he went on to be one of Real Madrid's greatest players - scoring 18 goals against their arch rivals.

El Clasico record goalscorer

The greatest goalscorer in the fixture is former Barcelona forward Lionel Messi, who spent 17 years at the Camp Nou.

The Argentinian scored 26 El Clasico goals, eight more than his fellow countryman Di Stefano and his great rival Cristiano Ronaldo.

El Clasico most appearances

Another Barcelona man takes the crown for the most number of appearances in this fixture, with midfielder Sergio Busquets facing Real Madrid on no less than 48 occasions - three more than Messi and former Los Blancos defender Sergio Ramos.

El Clasico hat-tricks

Before Vinicius Jr added his name to the El Clasico hat-trick record books in January, nine players had taken the match ball home with them at the end of the game.

Former Los Blancos captain Karim Benzema scored three in a 4-0 victory in the Copa del Rey last season while, Messi, Luis Suarez, Ivan Zamorano, Romario, Gary Lineker, Fernando Sanudo, Ferenc Puskas and Jesus Narro have also netted a trio of strikes in this fixture.