Real Madrid - Atlético, Spanish Super Cup 2024: why is Real Madrid the home team?

The 2024 Spanish Super Cup gets underway in Saudi Arabia on Wednesday (10 January) with a Madrid derby in the first of the two semi-finals. Real Madrid and Atlético Madrid are set to face each other three times in a little over three weeks, which Copa del Rey and LaLiga fixtures to follow the first game of the trilogy in Riyadh.

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RFEF criticised for taking Spanish Super Cup to Saudi Arabia

The tournament has been a four-team affair since 2019-20, when the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) and Saudi government penned a lucrative deal that would see the new expanded format moving to the Gulf region. Traditionally, the Spanish Super Cup had seen the previous season’s LaLiga champions face the Copa del Rey winners in a two-legged tie, normally before the beginning of the new league season.

The RFEF has faced consistent criticism about the deal, with Amnesty International leading the protests and accusing the Spanish FA of “collaboration in this ‘whitewashing’ of the image of Saudi Arabia”, where it said there had been very little improvement in the “the systematic abuse of homosexuals and continued discrimination against women.” Spanish state broadcaster RTVE, meanwhile, refused to bid for media rights in protest.

Spanish Super Cup semi-finals not decided via draw

As a result of the expansion to four teams, it is necessary to pair two sets of two together for the semi-finals, which is not done via a draw, as is the case in most knockout competitions. Instead, Spanish Super Cup rules state the LaLiga champions face the Copa del Rey runners-up in one last-four tie, with the cup winners facing the team that finished second in the league in the other. Because Real Madrid both won the Copa del Rey and were LaLiga runners-up, the second league spot this year passed down to third-placed Atlético Madrid.

Cup winners Madrid are therefore taking on Atleti (Wednesday 10 January, kick-off 2:00 p.m. ET), with 2022-23 LaLiga winners Barcelona facing Copa del Rey runners-up Osasuna (Thursday 11 January, kick-off 2:00 p.m. ET)

No Clásico final fix

Conspiracy theorists have often claimed the RFEF fix the semi-finals to make it possible for Real Madrid and Barça to meet in the final, which in reality may or may not happen depending on how they fared the previous season. While Spain’s “big two” did face each other in the 2023 final (as league winners and runners-up), they met in the semi-finals in 2022 (Barcelona qualified as 2020-21 cup winners and Madrid as LaLiga runners-up).

Trophy winners considered the “home” team

The two trophy-winning teams from last season are drawn as the “home” team, which essentially means they will use the home dressing room and dugouts, as well as their home kit if there is a colour clash.