Xabi Alonso is out as Real Madrid manager after the club and coach parted ways by mutual consent following Los Blancos’ 3-2 Supercopa defeat to Barcelona.
The result against Barca came with Real second in the table, four points behind Barcelona after 19 matches. The club’s position kept the move tied closely to the immediate pressure of the Supercopa loss and the league gap to its main rival.
Alonso, 44, was in his first season in charge of Real Madrid after three seasons at Bayer Leverkusen. His arrival followed a highly successful spell in Germany, where he led Leverkusen to an undefeated domestic season in 2024.
That 2024 campaign brought Leverkusen the club’s first Bundesliga title and the DFB-Pokal, giving Alonso one of the strongest managerial résumés in Europe before his move to Los Blancos.
Alonso also had a decorated playing career with Spain. Internationally, he was capped 112 times and was part of the Spain teams that won the 2010 World Cup and the Euro titles in 2008 and 2012.
Real’s next match is in the Copa del Rey, with Los Blancos returning to action in a Round of 16 tie against Albacete.