Desk Correspondent , Spain - Barcelona retained the Spanish Super Cup on Sunday with a hard-fought 3-2 victory over Real Madrid in a pulsating El Clasico final at the King Abdullah Sports City stadium in Jeddah. Brazilian winger Raphinha was the hero for the Blaugrana, netting twice to help Hansi Flick’s team secure their 16th Super Cup title. The win marks Barcelona’s first silverware of the 2025-26 season and continues their dominance in the competition following a 5-2 thrashing of Madrid in last year's final.

The match exploded into life during a frantic end to the first half. Raphinha opened the scoring in the 36th minute with a clinical low strike, but Madrid equalized in stoppage time through a brilliant solo effort by Vinicius Junior. The chaos continued as Robert Lewandowski chipped Thibaut Courtois to put Barca back in front, only for Madrid’s young forward Gonzalo Garcia to level the score again at 2-2 just before the interval. The decisive moment came in the 73rd minute when a deflected effort from Raphinha found the net, securing the trophy for the Catalans.

The final minutes were marked by high tension as Frenkie de Jong was shown a straight red card for a high lunge on Kylian Mbappe, who had entered the fray as a second-half substitute after recovering from a knee injury. Despite playing with 10 men, Barcelona’s defense held firm against relentless pressure from Xabi Alonso’s Madrid side. For Flick, the victory represents his fourth trophy since taking charge, while Alonso remains in search of his first title with Los Blancos. The triumph reinforces Barcelona's four-point lead at the top of the La Liga standings and cements their status as the current kings of Spanish football.