Real Madrid awaits historic Champions League appearance

Real Madrid will face its neighbor Atletico Madrid at the Santiago Bernabeu in the Spanish capital derby, in the first leg of the round of 16 of the Champions League for the current season 2024-2025. According to the Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo, the match is a historic milestone for Real Madrid, as it plays its 500th match in the Champions League, during its 44-season career in the most important continental tournament. Real Madrid is the club that has participated the most in the history of the tournament, having played 499 matches so far, followed by Bayern Munich in second place with 404 matches in 34 seasons, then Barcelona in third place with 357 matches in 28 seasons. As for the list of the 10 most participating clubs in the history of the Champions League, Juventus of Italy occupies the fourth place with 311 matches, followed by Benfica of Portugal with 302 matches, then Manchester United of England with 299 matches, Milan of Italy with 283 matches, Porto of Portugal with 277 matches, Dynamo Kiev of Ukraine with 261 matches, and finally Liverpool of England with 256 matches. Atletico Madrid comes in twenty-second place with 178 matches. During 499 matches in the Champions League, Real Madrid achieved 301 victories, compared to 85 draws and 113 defeats. The royal team also scored 1101 goals, and conceded 551 goals. In terms of cards, its players received 639 yellow cards and 24 red cards. The newspaper pointed out that Real Madrid played its first match in the European Champions League in its old format, the "European Cup", on September 8, 1955, against the Swiss team Servette at the Charmelles Stadium in Geneva, where the match ended with a 2-0 victory for the Merengue. Miguel Munoz scored the team's first goal in the tournament, before Real Madrid achieved its first title in its history after winning the final match against the French Stade de Reims.