After making a winning start to their La Liga campaign on Saturday night, Real Madrid return to the Bernabéu seeking to make it two wins out of two when Real Sociedad visit the Spanish capital on Wednesday night. This promises to be a tough early test for José Mourinho's team.
Real Madrid vs Real Sociedad match info
- Date: Wednesday 26 August 2026.
- Kick off times: 9pm (local) and 3pm (ET)
- Competition: La Liga matchday 2
- Venue: Estadio Santiago Bernabéu
- How to watch: ESPN+ (USA), Movistar+ (Spain) and Premier Sports (UK).
How can I watch Real Madrid vs Real Sociedad?
Country | Broadcasters |
|---|---|
United States | ESPN+ |
Spain | Movistar+ |
United Kingdom & Ireland | Premier Sports 1 |
Canada | TSN5 |
Australia, New Zealand and Arab world | beIN Sports Connect |
Austria, Belgium, France, Germany, Italy, Japan & Portugal | DAZN |
Africa | SuperSport |
Real Madrid vs Real Sociedad match preview
Fair to say, Real Madrid were not at their best in their La Liga opener, but picking three points is all that matters. On Saturday night, los Blancos were made to work hard as they beat Espanyol 2-1 at RCDE Stadium. Jude Bellingham's header broke the deadlock inside ten minutes, heading home Arda Güler's inch-perfect free-kick.
However, on the half hour mark, Álex Calatrava equalised for Blanquiazules, thereby seeming set to pinch a point. It remained level until, in the very last minute, Kylian Mbappé burst into the box, before debutant Carlos Espí pounced on the loose ball and slotted home the winner.
Having not come particularly close to winning La Liga in either of the last two seasons, the pressure is on returning head coach José Mourinho to deliver silverware this time. This match however continues los Merengues' tough start to the campaign. Yes, they host newly-promoted Málaga on Sunday, but that is followed by a clash with Real Betis at the Cartuja the following Friday night. Thus, they can ill afford to drop points here.
As for Real Sociedad, despite finishing tenth, last season was a massive success. That is because, los Txuri-Urdin won the Copa del Rey, beating Atlético Madrid on penalties in the final. This not only secured just la Real's second major trophy since 1987, but saw them qualify for the Europa League.
Following the appointment of Pellegrino Matarazzo just before Christmas, la Real exponentially improved. They were 16th and in a relegation battle when the American arrived, losing only one of his first nine games in charge, before things tailed off following their Copa triumph.
Real Sociedad began the new campaign on Friday, narrowly beaten 1-0 by Real Betis on the road, the night's only goal coming on the hour mark. So, can the Basque side now upset Real Madrid?
Real Madrid team news
José Mourinho is without Éder Militão, Raúl Asencio, Ferland Mendy, Aurélien Tchouaméni, Thiago Pitarch, Rodygo and Endrick due to injury. He deployed Fede Valverde alongside new signing Bernardo Silva in midfield on Saturday, with Arda Güler on the right, so will we see that again?
Elsewhere, Denzel Dumfries got the nod over Trent Alexander-Arnold at right-back while, on the opposite side, Marc Cucurella could displace Álvaro Carreras. Yan Diomandé debuted off the bench too, hoping to start this time, while Kylian Mbappé has never failed to score against Real Sociedad in a La Liga match, netting seven in six against them to date.
Real Sociedad team news
Pellegrino Matarazzo is without Álvaro Odriozola and Gonçalo Guedes due to injury, while World Cup winner Mikel Oyarzabal came off the bench against Real Betis on Friday, but is forecast to start this time.
Predicted Line-ups
- Real Madrid predicted lineup: Courtois; Dumfries, Konaté, Huijsen, Cucurella; Valverde, Silva, Bellingham; Diomandé, Vinícius, Mbappé.
- Real Sociedad predicted lineup: Remiro; Aramburu, Martín, Zubeldia, Gómez; Soler, Herrera, Sučić; Oyarzabal, Óskarsson, Barrenetxea.
- Score prediction: Real Madrid 3-1 Real Sociedad.
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