Four of the last six meetings between these two Madrid rivals have actually produced draws. Nevertheless, Real Madrid are unbeaten in 17 home games against Rayo Vallecano, winning 15 of them, dating back to 1996. Across these 15 victories, los Blancos have scored 49 goals, including a 10-2 victory in 2015.
So, ahead of this Saturday night La Liga fixture at the Bernabéu, we've got everything you need know covered.
Real Madrid vs Rayo Vallecano match info
- Date: Saturday 12 September 2026.
- Kick off times: 9pm (local) and 3pm (ET)
- Competition: La Liga matchday 5
- Venue: Estadio Santiago Bernabéu
- How to watch: ESPN+ (USA), Movistar+ & DAZN (Spain) and Disney+ (UK).
How can I watch Real Madrid vs Rayo Vallecano?
Country | Broadcasters |
|---|---|
United States | ESPN+ |
Spain | DAZN & Movistar+ |
United Kingdom & Ireland | Disney+ |
Canada | TSN |
Australia, New Zealand and Arab world | beIN SPORTS |
Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Japan & Portugal | DAZN |
Africa | SuperSport MáXimo |
South America | ESPN |
Real Madrid vs Rayo Vallecano match preview
After dropping points for the first time in La Liga this season, can Real Madrid get back to winning ways? Last Friday night, los Blancos were beaten 1-0 by Real Betis at the Cartuja. The only goal came nine minutes from time, while Kylian Mbappé then saw a stoppage time spot-kick saved. Despite defeat, los Merengues' xG figure of 3.46 underlined that it is not time to panic.
Well, since then, José Mourinho's side have made a winning start to their Champions League campaign, beating Internazionale 2-1 on Tuesday. Early goals from Kylian Mbappé and Fede Valverde were enough to secure victory, the latter pouncing on a catastrophic goalkeeping error. Los Blancos are yet to finish in the top eight since the league phase was introduced, but victory in one of their toughest fixtures already leaves them well-placed, even at this early stage.
Back in La Liga, Mourinho's team won their first three against Espanyol, Real Sociedad and Málaga, but Friday's defeat in Seville means they are now three points adrift Barcelona. Not wanting to fall further behind, victory on Saturday night feels vital, but also pretty inevitable at the Bernabéu.
As for Rayo Vallecano, they are a club in crisis. Unable to play at their home stadium Vallecas due to the risk to fans of contracting Legionnaires' disease, los Franjirrojos' off-field troubles seem to be impacting their play on the pitch too. Beñat San José's side picked up just one point from their first three La Liga games, including being smashed 5-2 at Camp Nou. In fairness, Barça are scoring five against everyone at the moment.
Nevertheless, at their temporary home of Butarque, los Franjirrojos did then claim a first victory of the season a week ago, beating newly-promoted Racing Santander 3-2. Rayo had to come from behind to claim three important points, with Sergio Camello scoring twice either side of half time in South Madrid. Nevertheless, at the Bernabéu, Real Madrid are expected to blow their city rivals away.
Real Madrid team news
Eduardo Camavinga and Arda Güler were both suspended for the mid-week Champions League game, hence why we saw Trent Alexander-Arnold in midfield, but both could return to the starting lineup. In a major boost, fit again Aurélien Tchouaméni came off the bench against Inter, his first minutes of the season, so will he be ready to start this time?
Yan Diomandé is still yet to start since his big money move from RB Leipzig, a fact that is unlikely to change here, while Dean Huijsen alongside Ibrahima Konaté is Mourinho's first-choice centre-back pairing, both chosen over Antonio Rüdiger. Lastly, Endrick was back on the bench in mid-week, hoping for his first Real Madrid appearance since December.
Rayo Vallecano team news
Rayo Vallecano are without Augusto Batalla, Marash Kumbulla, Óscar Valentín and former Real Madrid striker Raúl de Tomás due to injury. Meantime both Fran Pérez and Jorge de Frutos were sent off towards the end of last weekend's win over Racing Santander, very much limiting Beñat San José's attacking options.
Predicted Line-ups
- Real Madrid predicted lineup: Courtois; Dumfries, Konaté, Huijsen, Cucurella; Valverde, Tchouaméni, Bellingham; Güler, Vinícius, Mbappé.
- Rayo Vallecano predicted lineup: Cárdenas; Rațiu, Lejeune, Ciss, Pedrosa; Valentín, López, Díaz, Alemão, Tsitaishvili; Camello.
- Score prediction: Real Madrid 4-0 Rayo Vallecano.
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