Despite winning three Champions Leagues in a row in the last decade, and four in total, Real Madrid have not been crowned as the best Spanish team of the 21st century.
Los Blancos are unlikely to be too enamoured to find out that it’s their biggest rivals, Barcelona, who’ve been handed the accolade.
According to Sport, a study by the Center for Research, History and Statistics of Spanish Football (CIHEFE), places the Catalans at the top due to its results in all competitions.
It’s important to note that Real Madrid do surpass them in titles in Europe, of course.
The study has been based on the IFFHS criteria, with the blaugrana leading the ranking with 3,465 points.
Los Blancos are placed second with 3,347 points, ahead of cross-city rivals, Atlético Madrid on 2,149.
Valencia (2,139), Sevilla (1,992), Villarreal (1,648), Athletic Club (1,405), Deportivo la Coruña (1,395), Celta (1,164), Espanyol (1,144), Betis (1,137), Real Sociedad (1,108 ), Malaga (1,035), Getafe (1,028) and Mallorca (1,009), complete the list of the fifteen clubs that have exceeded a thousand points in the ranking.