Every Player to Have Played for Barcelona and Real Madrid

Key Takeaways

• 38 players have transferred between Barcelona and Real Madrid, with 10 famous examples highlighted.
• Important players in football history like Luis Figo and Ronaldo moved between the clubs.
• Despite the rivalry, some players like Ronaldo and Samuel Eto’o are loved by fans of both clubs.

In the world of football, there are few encounters on a scale quite like the Clasico. The historic rivalry between FC Barcelona and Real Madrid, two of the greatest clubs in history, has spanned the ages and, despite the passing of the years, continues to unleash the passions of fans aged nine to 99.

Such is the antagonism that even mentioning the names of players who have played for the two clubs is taboo. However, these are far from isolated cases, and 38 courageous players have so far lent themselves to the experiment. GIVEMESPORT has compiled a list of these players in this article, with a particular focus on the 10 most famous transfers involving the Blaugrana and the Merengue.

In the first half of the 20th century, it was common for players to be loaned out for one or two matches. This was notably the case for several of those listed in the table above.

10 Alfonso Albeniz

FC Barcelona (1901-1902), Real Madrid (1902-1912)

Alfonso Albeniz will go down in history as the first player to wear the colours of both FC Barcelona and Real Madrid. A player with the Catalan club, with whom he played in the first Clasico between the two rivals, at the dawn of the 20th century, the midfielder joined the Casa Blanca in 1902.

It was a decision motivated far more by academic reasons than sporting ones. And so it was not until nine years later that Albeniz made his first-team debut for Real Madrid, preferring to concentrate on his studies rather than football. His first and only known appearance with the club from the Iberian capital.

9 Josep Samitier

FC Barcelona (1919-1932), Real Madrid (1932-1934)

Before becoming technical director (he was behind Evaristo’s arrival in Catalonia), Josep Samitier first shone in the colours of the Blaugrana club. As the club’s striker between 1919 and 1932, the Spaniard helped the club win a host of titles, including the very first edition of La Liga in 1929 and no fewer than twelve Catalan league titles.

But after 13 years at the club, and with his relationship with the club becoming increasingly strained, Samitier left Barça and joined Real Madrid, who took full advantage of the situation. And although his Madrid adventure was ultimately short-lived, the now veteran took the opportunity to add a La Liga title and a Copa del Rey to an already impressive list of honours.

8 Evaristo

FC Barcelona (1957-1962), Real Madrid (1962-1965)

A legend with FC Barcelona and, more broadly, Brazilian football, of which he is recognised as one of the most brilliant representatives, Evaristo also occupies a prominent place on this list. Recruited from Flamengo in 1957, the Carioca striker soon established himself on European soil. During his five years at Barcelona, he won several titles and produced a number of memorable performances.

But in 1962, after his club refused to release him to play in the Swedish World Cup (won by young Pele’s Brazil), Evaristo left Catalonia and joined Real Madrid. It was a club where a serious knee injury limited his number of appearances, despite the two Spanish league titles he did win.

7 Bernd Schuster

FC Barcelona (1980-1988), Real Madrid (1988-1990)

After launching his career with FC Koln, Bernd Schuster left his native Germany to join FC Barcelona in 1980. It was a club he would play for for eight years, establishing himself as a midfield metronome and scoring numerous goals. But despite his undoubted talent, Schuster was constantly criticised for his attitude and strong character, which were not appreciated by many of his team-mates.

His transfer to Real Madrid in 1988 was a good indication of this. His move to Atletico Madrid was another. ‘Der Blonde Engel’ (The Blond Angel) was a mixture of light and shade, but one thing is certain: he left no one indifferent.

6 Michael Laudrup

FC Barcelona (1989-1994), Real Madrid (1994-1996)

Recruited at the express request of Johan Cruyff, Michael Laudrup left Lazio to join FC Barcelona in 1989. There, the Dane quickly established himself as one of the key players in the great Barça of the 1990s, which many still regard as one of the greatest teams of all time. But in 1994, after five successful seasons, the playmaker left the Camp Nou at the same time as Cruyff, who had been sacked, to join Real Madrid.

It was a two-year adventure during which the 1992 Champions League winner managed to leave an indelible mark on the hearts of the Merengues fans, winning La Liga (his fifth in a row) a year after arriving at the Santiago Bernabeu.

5 Miquel Soler

FC Barcelona (1988-1995), Real Madrid (1995-1996)

Having represented Barcelona and Real Madrid during his career is already controversial, but imagine if a player had also played for RCD Espanyol and Atletico Madrid, the other great rivals of each of the two clubs. This is the case of Miquel Soler, for example.

A player with a career spanning two decades and numerous adventures in the four corners of Spain, the left-back began his career at Espanyol before joining the Blaugrana in 1988 – with whom he played until 1991, then between 1992 and 1993. After a spell with Atletico, the player with nine international caps finally moved to Real Madrid for the 1995-1996 season.

4 Luis Enrique

Real Madrid (1991-1996), FC Barcelona (1996-2004)

For the younger generation, the image of Luis Enrique is that of a renowned coach, winner of the Champions League in 2015 and now sitting on the bench at Paris Saint-Germain. For others, a little older, the Spaniard remains the brilliant midfielder who played over 200 games for Real Madrid and Barcelona.

A player, like the coach, with a strong character, who, when he joined Barça after spending five years of his career with Los Merengues, made no bones about the lack of recognition he had received from Madrid fans. It was a love that their Barcelona counterparts ended up giving him, as his life would forever be inextricably linked to the Catalan club.

3 Luis Figo

FC Barcelona (1995-2000), Real Madrid (2000-2005)

Luis Figo’s transfer from Barça to Real Madrid is undoubtedly the most controversial on this list – and incidentally one of the most controversial in football history. Considered one of the best Portuguese players in history, the forward moved to Catalonia in 1995, establishing himself as a genuine star of world football and helping his club win numerous trophies. But in 2000, when Barcelona were going through an institutional crisis, Figo tried to take advantage of the situation to obtain a pay rise.

His request was opposed by his management, and precipitated the Lusitanian player’s departure for arch-rivals Madrid, a move that Florentino Perez, candidate for the presidency of Real Madrid, had made a campaign promise. It was a real heartbreak for the Barcelona fans, whose idol the Almada-born player had become.

2 Ronaldo

FC Barcelona (1996-1997), Real Madrid (2002-2007)

Unlike some of the players who have played for both Barça and Real Madrid, Ronaldo remains a player loved by fans of both clubs. The Brazilian centre-forward arrived in Catalonia after two highly successful seasons with PSV, and it was not long before he was dazzling La Liga fans with his talent.

He even went on to win the Ballon d’Or, the youngest of all time, after a season – his only at the Camp Nou – in which he scored 47 goals in 49 appearances. He moved to Inter Milan in 1997, where he spent five seasons before joining Real Madrid, where he continued to shine, winning La Liga in 2003 after winning a second Ballon d’Or a year earlier.

1 Samuel Eto’o

Real Madrid (1997-2000), FC Barcelona (2004-2009)

You may have forgotten, but it was at Real Madrid that Samuel Eto’o signed his first professional contract. It was an adventure that lasted three seasons, during which time the Cameroonian striker wore the Madrid colours on just seven occasions, and during which he spent three consecutive loan spells.

Transferred to RCD Mallorca in 2000, he finally exploded into the public eye and joined FC Barcelona in 2004. At the Camp Nou, Eto’o quickly became a superstar. He piled up the goals and the trophies, earning his stripes in the eyes of observers the world over. He played for Barcelona for five seasons, before finally joining Inter Milan, where he will continue to write his legend.

Correct as of 18-11-2024.