Real Madrid Club de Fútbol, or Real Madrid as they are popularly known, is the Spanish football club based in Madrid, Spain. The club play their football at the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, an 80,000-seater stadium. The club is regarded as one of the greatest in the world, and they also stand atop of other clubs in the standings when it comes to the income and revenue generated. The club was founded in 1902, and it’s one among the few clubs to have not been relegated from the top division of Spanish football.
Real Madrid have a fierce rivalry with their local town rivals Atletico Madrid and main challenges for the title – Barcelona. The match with Barcelona this famously called as the El Classico, and it has been the stage for many famous encounters between the two sides. Real Madrid are famous for playing in the white jersey, which has been worn by the likes of Alfredo Di Stefano and Ronaldo. Real Madrid are also currently the top side when it comes to generating revenues, as they consistently have been raking over €400 million in the last decade. Many value the club at around € 1.4 million.
The club is currently the record holder of the European Cup titles, as it has won the title a mammoth nine times. It also holds the Spanish record for having the most number of league titles, which stand at 31. Even more astonishing is the number of times that they have finished as the runners up – 20. Aside from the European cup/Champions League, Real Madrid has also won the UEFA Super Cup, UEFA Cup Winners’ Cup, UEFA Cup/ UEFA Europa League, and the Copa de la Liga a couple of times.
Some of the most notable players who have represented a Real Madrid over the years include Alfredo Di Stefano, Ronaldo, Zinedine Zidane, David Beckham, Raul, Roberto Carlos, and Iker Casillas. The period from 2000 to 2010 has been one of the most famous in terms of the signings that Real Madrid have made. The start of the Galacticos era brought a number of high-profile players to the Santiago Bernabeu, although the most successful era of the club’s history was when Alfredo Di Stefano played for the club back in the 1950s.
The club managed to win a record five consecutive European Cups, with Alfredo Di Stefano in the side. Even though the El Classico is a more popular match than the El Derbi madrileño – the derby between Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid, it still continues to draw a lot of attention. The club is also well-known for its crest, which resembles the power and superiority that the club have in Spain. The crest has been changed many times over the years, with the most recent one coming in 2001 in order to reflect the new era within the club. The club currently hold the transfer records for many players, with the highest being the €96 million paid for Cristiano Ronaldo in 2009.