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Updated January 15, 2026

History Has Been Made! Albacete Knocked Out Real Madrid

TL;DR

On Wednesday, January 14, 2026, Albacete Balompié, a team from the second division, did something almost nobody thought was possible. They defeated the world...

Written and reviewed by Manish Rajan. Reviewed using our methodology.

History Has Been Made! Albacete Knocked Out Real Madrid

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On Wednesday, January 14, 2026, Albacete Balompié, a team from the second division, did something almost nobody thought was possible. They defeated the world-famous Real Madrid with a score of 3 - 2 in the Copa del Rey. The game was played at Albacete’s home stadium, the Carlos Belmonte. It was A very strange night because a thick fog covered the field, And it Was so hard to see That players had trouble finding their teammates. Even with the bad weather, 17,000 fans showed up to cheer. They were hoping for a Miracle , and that is exactly what they got.

A New Coach and Missing Stars

Real Madrid was Going through a lot of changes before the game. Just two days earlier, They sacked Xabi Alonso and appointed a former player, Álvaro Arbeloa, to take over the team. This was Arbeloa’s very first game as the boss, and it did not go well. Arbeloa made a Big decision to leave many famous stars At home . Players like Kylian Mbappé and Jude Bellingham did not play at all. The coach wanted them to rest for Other games, but without them, the team struggled to score. The match was interesting because the lead kept changing. Albacete scored first when Javi Villar hit the ball with his head into the net in the 42nd minute. Real Madrid fans were worried, but their team scored right before halftime. A young player, Franco Mastantuono, tied the game at 1 - 1. In the second half, the drama got even higher. In the 82nd minute, Albacete’s Jefté Betancor scored to make it 2 - 1. Real Madrid fought back again, and in the 91st minute, Gonzalo García scored a header to make it 2 - 2. Everyone thought the game would go into extra time. But in the very last minute, Jefté Betancor scored his second goal of the night. Albacete won 3 - 2, and the stadium Went wild with joy. This loss is a huge problem for Real Madrid. Just three days Before this , they Lost another trophy to their rivals, Barcelona. Now they are out of the Copa del Rey Too . Captain Dani Carvajal told reporters that the players are to blame and that they need to work harder. For Albacete, this is their first-ever win against Real Madrid in 15 tries. They are now moving on to the Quarter-finals of the tournament, while Real Madrid has to go home and figure out how to fix their season.

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