Barcelona and Real Madrid go head to head in El Clasico at the Nou Camp on Sunday.
Here are some lesser known facts about the storied rivalry.
1. The first four meetings were between FC Barcelona and ‘Madrid CF.’ It wasn’t until 1920 that the Real prefix was given to the capital city club by King Alfonso XIII; ‘Real’ translates as “Royal” in English.
2. Real Madrid boast the record for the largest-ever margin of victory in this fixture, after picking up a 11-1 win in a Copa del Rey clash in 1943. The tension surrounding that game was so high that it is considered by many as one of the catalysts for the animosity between the two teams.
3. This fixture basically guarantees goals. Not since a 0-0 draw at the Camp Nou in 2002 has there been an El Clasico without at least a goal. Since then we’ve seen 152 ripplings of the net across 46 fixtures.
4. They’ve not only battled on the pitch but have also regularly competed for players in the transfer market. There are recent cases such as Neymar, Andre Gomes and Dani Ceballos, but the most famous transfer battle was for Alfredo Di Stefano. Real Madrid came out on top and the rest – including five European Cups – is history.
5. Not many players represent both clubs during their career, but current Real Madrid coach Julen Lopetegui is one of the few to have done so. Although he never took part in an El Clasico during his career as a goalkeeper, he was on the books at Real Madrid from 1988 to 1991 and Barcelona between 1994 and 1997.
