Real Madrid-Mallorca: Defending champions begin Super Cup campaign
9 hour(s)
The Spanish Super Cup kicks off and Real Madrid, the defending champions, will be battling it out for potentially their third trophy of the season. For the sixth consecutive year, the tournament will be played in a final four format and the Whites will face Mallorca this evening in the second semi-final (8 pm CET). Should Ancelotti's side prevail, they will face the winners of Athletic-Barcelona. All matches are to be played at the King Abdullah Stadium in Jeddah.
Madrid will be participating in the Spanish Super Cup as champions of LaLiga. They will also be vying to defend the trophy they lifted a year ago in Riyadh against Barcelona. Meanwhile, Mallorca go into this competition having been finalists in last year's Copa del Rey. The Balearic side have one Super Cup to their name, which they claimed in 1998, having beaten Barcelona in a two-legged decider.
, including the in-form Vini Jr. The Brazilian was instrumental in last year's competition when he scored a hat-trick in the final, which earned him the MVP award. This season he has already netted 14 goals - the same as Mbappé. The contribution of both forwards, along Bellingham, will be paramount to reaching the final.
Previous Super Cup meetings
This will be the third time that both teams have met in the Spanish Super Cup. The first was in 2003. Mallorca won the first leg (2-1) and Real Madrid came from behind in the second game at the Santiago Bernabéu to lift the trophy (3-0). This season, they have already faced each other in domestic competition. They met on the first matchday of the LaLiga, where they played out a 1-1 draw.