Barcelona will host Real Madrid in the 264th El Clasico on Sunday at Camp Nou, with a La Liga title on the line. Barcelona, coached by Hansi Flick, will clinch the championship in their own stadium if Real Madrid fail to win.

The reigning champions lead the table by 11 points with four matches remaining and are targeting their 28th La Liga title. Real Madrid have won the competition 36 times.

Both clubs were eliminated from the UEFA Champions League at the quarterfinal stage. In their most recent meetings, Barcelona defeated Real Madrid 3-2 in the Spanish Super Cup final on January 11, 2026. On October 26, 2025, Real Madrid defeated Barcelona 2-1 in La Liga. Earlier in 2025, Barcelona won 4-3 in La Liga on May 11, took the Copa del Rey final 3-2 after extra time on April 26, and won 5-2 in the Spanish Super Cup final on January 12.

Real Madrid will be without Federico Valverde, who sustained a head injury in a training incident involving Aurelien Tchouameni and was taken to hospital. The club has opened disciplinary proceedings against both players. It is not yet clear whether Tchouameni will be available for Sunday's match.

Kylian Mbappe, who tops the Spanish league scoring charts this season with 24 goals, is a doubt for the Clasico due to a hamstring injury. Mbappe joined Real Madrid from Paris Saint-Germain two seasons ago. Barcelona will be without Lamine Yamal, who has scored 16 goals this season and is out for the remainder of the campaign.

The fixture dates back to May 13, 1902, when the two clubs met in the Copa de la Coronacion, with Barcelona winning 3-1 in Madrid. Across 261 matches over 124 years, Real Madrid have won 106 and Barcelona 105. The term El Clasico, which translates to The Classic, first appeared in a Spanish newspaper during the 1960s to refer to matches between the two clubs. The phrase Viejo Clasico originally referred to the Madrid derby between Real Madrid and Athletic Bilbao, historically the most-played fixture in Spanish football before the rise of Barcelona.

Lionel Messi has scored 26 goals in El Clasico matches for Barcelona. Alfredo Di Stefano and Cristiano Ronaldo have each scored 18 for Real Madrid, followed by Karim Benzema with 16 and Raul with 15.