Atletico beat Real 2-1 in derby to go second in La Liga

Atletico Madrid beat Real Madrid 2-1 in the Madrid derby on Sunday, 20 September, to move above their city rivals into second place in La Liga, Spain's top flight.

It was a tight win. Just one goal in it. But it was enough to flip the order near the top of the table, with Atletico now sitting second and Real just behind them, BBC reported.

The game was the first derby of the 2026/27 La Liga season. It was played at Atletico's home, the Riyadh Air Metropolitano, on matchday 7 of the league campaign, after the fixture list paired the two clubs for 20 September, Atlético de Madrid confirmed.

Kick-off was at 16:15 local time. A derby is a match between two teams from the same city, and in Madrid it always brings noise, colour and nerves.

The result keeps up a run of lively recent derbies. Last season, Julian Alvarez scored twice as Atletico came from behind to beat Real 5-2 on 27 September 2025, Reuters reported. Real hit back later in that campaign, with Vinicius Jr scoring twice in a 3-2 win over Atletico on 22 March 2026, Reuters reported.

History still leans heavily towards Real. La Liga's all-time record for El Derbi de Madrid, as the fixture is known, lists 156 wins for Real Madrid and 76 for Atletico, LaLiga records. The gap shows how much these recent Atletico wins have mattered to their supporters.

For fans, this one will taste sweet. A home derby win, decided by a single goal, and second place as the reward. In a city split in two by football, that is enough to lift the mood for weeks.