Atletico Madrid will begin the new year at the top of the La Liga table—who would have thought this just a few weeks ago? Whether you imagined it or not, this is the reality. Atletico, led by Diego Simeone, has surpassed Spain’s most successful clubs, Real Madrid and Barcelona, and now sits at the top.
There are plenty of examples where teams have been on top of the table midway through the season but failed to secure the title. However, Atletico’s consistent performance in the 2024–25 season has them in a strong position to challenge for the trophy.
In this season, Atletico has won 12 consecutive matches across all competitions, including 7 straight wins in La Liga. Their last loss came back in October. Before the Christmas and New Year break, they turned things around in their final match.
On December 21, Atletico made an impressive comeback against Barcelona, winning 2–1 at Camp Nou after trailing in the first half. That victory put Atletico at the top of the table, pushing Barcelona down to third place. Real Madrid, their city rivals and Barcelona’s arch-rivals, are second.
Atletico now has 41 points, Real Madrid has 40, and Barcelona has 38. With only a 3-point gap between the top three clubs, the La Liga title race has heated up midway through the season. However, Barcelona has played one more match than both Real and Atletico.
Not only in La Liga, but Atletico Madrid has the most points among the top five European domestic leagues right now.
At the start of the season, Barcelona was dominating. Under the guidance of their new manager, Hansi Flick, Barcelona thrashed Real Madrid 3–0 in the first El Clasico of the season with Lewandowski, Yamal, and Raphinha leading the charge.
But from the second week of November onwards, Barcelona lost their rhythm. From then until Christmas, they won only one of their seven league matches. In addition to their inconsistency, the injury to young winger Lamine Yamal was a major setback for the team.
With Barcelona faltering, Real Madrid had an opportunity to move to the top, but they squandered it by dropping points to the relatively weaker Rayo Vallecano. During this period of instability for both Barcelona and Real Madrid, Atletico seized the opportunity and has now moved to the top by making victories a habit.
Atletico’s last La Liga title came in the 2020–21 season, where they clinched the title on the final day, finishing two points ahead of Real Madrid.
In the following three seasons, La Liga’s title races were less dramatic. In 2021–22, Real Madrid finished 13 points clear of Barcelona. In the 2022–23 season, Xavi Hernandez’s Barcelona won the league 10 points ahead of Real Madrid. Last season, Real Madrid reclaimed the title, finishing 10 points ahead of Barcelona.
Before the 2020–21 season, Atletico’s last La Liga title came in the 2013–14 season, where they finished just 3 points ahead of Barcelona and Real Madrid. That season, as always when Atletico wins the league, the title race is extremely tight. Could this season be another historic one for Simeone’s men?
