Clubs with Most Copa del Rey Trophies Won

The teams that compete for Copa del Rey - let’s call them

Copa del Rey teams

, as mentioned above, are from different tiers of the Spanish football league system, however, the winners of Copa del Rey trophy are majorly from the Spanish top-tier league, La Liga, as expected.

The number of teams that compete in Copa del Rey (Copa del Rey teams) is roughly 128 and takes them quite a while - around 5 months from November to April - to compete and determine the Copa del Rey trophy winner each year. And who was the Copa del Rey winner in 2021? Well, we’ll let you know in this post.

A List of Clubs with Most Copa del Rey Trophies Won

Which Copa del Rey teams have won the most number of Copa del Rey trophies to this date? Let’s see. And please note that by trophy in front of the name of each club we mean Copa del Rey trophy.

Barcelona (31 Trophies)

Number one on the list of clubs with most Copa del Rey trophies won and also the

Copa del Rey winner in 2021

- we mean 2020-21 season, Barcelona have won 31 Copa del Rey trophies to this date and by that number they sit at the top of the list. Barcelona have also finished as runners-up 11 times in the major Spanish competition which means they have been the competition’s finalists 42 times; again higher than any other club on the list, though concerning the number of times they have finished as runners-up they are not in front of all.

The most number of consecutive Copa del Rey trophies Barcelona have won is 4 pertaining to the four of the same trophy they won between 2014 and 2018. As you see, Barcelona are in front in two respects: The number of

trophies they have won (31), and the number of times they have finished as finalists in the history of the trophy (42), indeed, up to this date. The best win Barcelona had in a Copa del Rey final actually dates back to the 2017-18 season where they beat Sevilla 5-0 and became the champions. In another occasion, they faced RCD Mallorca in the final and beat them 6-5 but on penalties.

Athletic Bilbao (23 Trophies)

You might have expected that Real Madrid comes next to Barcelona on the list of clubs with most Copa del Rey trophies won, but to your surprise, we should say it’s actually Athletic Bilbao that comes next. Athletic Bilbao have won a total of 23 Copa del Rey trophies to this date and they have finished 16 times as runners-up in the major Spanish competition - more than Barcelona actually. And putting those two numbers together, you can easily conclude that they have been Copa del Rey finalists 39 times.

are actually the winners of the first two editions of Copa del Rey, namely the 1903 and 1904 editions of the competition. Just like Barcelona, they have also won four of their Copa del Rey trophies, namely the trophies they won from 1930 to 1933, consecutively. The most recent Copa del Rey trophy the Lions have won is the 2019-20 edition of it, and their best win in a Copa del Rey final dates back to 1914-15 season where they managed to beat Espanyol 5-0 and become champions. It should be mentioned here that Copa del Rey top scorer of all time, Telmo Zarra, played sometime between 1940 to 1955 for Athletic Bilbao.

Real Madrid (19 Trophies)

And finally comes Real Madrid on the list of

clubs with most Copa del Rey trophies won

. They are very near to Athletic Bilbao on the list and if they manage to win another 4 Copa del Rey trophies, they can actually take their position on the list and become second. What is to be mentioned about Real Madrid is that they have finished 20 times as runners-up in the Copa del Rey competitions which is more than any other club on the list. In fact, if we were to sort the list based on the number of times a club has finished as runner-up, then Real Madrid would top the list.

In terms of consecutive Copa del Rey wins,

are just like Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao: 4 consecutive wins and from 1905 to 1908. The most recent Copa del Rey trophy Real Madrid have won was actually in 2013-14 season where they managed to beat Barcelona 2-1 in the final and become champions, and the best win Real Madrid have ever had in a final of Copa del Rey competition was in 1979-80 season that they managed to achieve a 6-1 victory over Castilla CF. As you see, the number of goals registered for Real Madrid in a Copa del Rey final victory is more than both those of Barcelona and Athletic Bilbao.

Atletico Madrid (10 Trophies)

The last club on the list of clubs with most Copa del Rey trophies won with ten or more than ten Copa del Rey trophies, Atletico Madrid have won exactly ten Copa del Rey trophies to this date. They have also finished 9 times as runners-up in the major Spanish competition which means, in total, they have advanced to the competition’s final 19 times during their history. Atletico Madrid have only two consecutive Copa del Rey wins to their name in two rounds which actually happened in 1990-91 and 1991-92, and 1959-60 and 1960-61 seasons.

Although Atletico Madrid had finished as runners-up a couple of times in almost early years of Copa del Rey launch, the first Copa del Rey they won was in 1959-60 season. And the latest? Well, that was in 2012-13 season where they managed to beat Real Madrid 2-1 in the final and after extra time. The best win Atletico Madrid have had in a Copa del Rey final during their history was their win against Real Madrid in the first edition of the Spanish cup they won; actually the 1959-60 edition where they managed to beat the Whites 3-1 in the final.

It might be also interesting for you to know that Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid have faced each other five times in Copa del Rey finals in four of which Atletico Madrid beat Real Madrid despite the fact that it is considered a lesser club than Real Madrid. And finally it should be mentioned that some great players like Antoine Griezmann, Fernando Torres, Diego Costa,

, and Sergio Aguero have played sometime during their careers for the Mattresses.

Valencia (8 Trophies)

The winner of 8 Copa del Rey trophies who have also finished 9 times as runners-up in the major Spanish competition, Valencia are the next club on our list of

clubs with most Copa del Rey trophies won

who actually occupy the 5th position on the list. As the numbers above suggest, Valencia have been Copa del Rey finalists for 17 times, however, they have never won consecutive Copa del Rey trophies like the clubs already mentioned in this post, but as runners-up, they have a consecutive record of three seasons from 1969 to 1972 where they finished second in the competition.

The first Copa del Rey trophy Valencia won was in 1941 and the latest one in 2018-19 season where they managed to beat Barcelona 2-1 in the competition’s final. The best win Valencia has ever had in a Copa del Rey final was in 1998-99 season where they beat Atletico Madrid 3-0 and became champions.  And don’t forget that some top players like

, Mario Kempes, David Villa, and Roberto Ayala have played sometime during their careers for Valencia.

Zaragoza (6 Trophies)

Zaragoza or

are the winners of 6 Copa del Rey trophies to this date. They have also finished as runners-up five times in the major Spanish competition which means they have advanced to its final 11 times. Zaragoza have neither won any consecutive Copa del Rey trophies nor they have finished as runners-up any consecutive times, however, if you consider the first four times they advanced to the final of the major Spanish competition, namely from 1962 to 1966, you see that they either won the competition or finished as runners-up in each of the years mentioned above - actually in 1962-63 and 1964-65 they finished as runners-up and in 1963-64 and 1965-66 they won the Spanish cup. The last time Zaragoza won a Copa del Rey trophy was in 2003-04 season where they actually beat Real Madrid 3-2 in the final and after extra time. And this win has also been their best win in a Copa del Rey final during the Spanish cup history.

Sevilla (5 Trophies)

And here comes the first team on the list of clubs with most Copa del Rey trophies won with their number of winning the Copa del Rey trophy and the number of times they finished as runners-up in the major Spanish competition being less than 10. As you see from the title, Sevilla have won the Copa del Rey trophy five times with none of these times being consecutive; actually in 1935, 1939, 1947-48, 2006-07, and 2009-10 seasons. They have also finished 4 times as runners-up in the major Spanish competition, namely in 1955, 1961-62, 2015-16, and 2017-18 seasons, which sums up to 9 times for them advancing to a Copa del Rey final. As mentioned above, the last time Sevilla have won a Copa del Rey trophy was in 2009-10 season where they managed to beat Atletico Madrid 2-0 in the final. And the best win Sevilla have ever had in a Copa del Rey final was in 1938-39 season where they beat Racing Ferrol 6-2 and became champions.

Espanyol (4 trophies)

Espanyol are just like Sevilla in terms of the total number of times they won a

Copa del Rey trophy

or finished as runners-up in the major Spanish competition (9 times), however, their difference with Sevilla is that they have won 4 Copa del Rey trophies and have finished as runners-up 5 times in the Spanish competition history. Espanyol have won the Copa del Rey trophy in 1929, 1940, 1999-2000, and 2005-06 seasons, and they have finished as runners-up in 1911, 1915, 1941, 1947, and 1957. As you see, the latest time Espanyol won a Copa del Rey trophy was in 2005-06 season where they managed to beat Zaragoza 4-1 in the final and become champions. This win is also their best win ever in a Copa del Rey final. And finally don’t forget that some top players like Alfredo Di Stefano, Luis Garcia, and Pablo Zabaleta played sometime during their careers for the White and Blues.

Real Union (4 Trophies)

Among old Spanish clubs and one of the founders of La Liga,

have won four Copa del Rey trophies to this date. They have also finished once as runners-up in the major Spanish competition which, considering their win times, means that they have advanced to the Copa del Rey final round 5 times during their history. One thing to consider about this club is that all of their Copa del Rey wins occurred actually before 1930: They won the Spanish major cup in 1913, 1918, 1924, and 1931, and in 1922 they finished as runners-up. The best win Real Union have had during their history in a Copa del Rey final was in 1917-18 season where they beat Real Madrid 2-0 and became champions.

Real Sociedad (3 Trophies)

Real Sociedad have won three Copa del Rey trophies to this date and if you add to it the five times they finished as runners-up, then we can say they have become finalists in eight editions of the major Spanish cup, namely in 1909, 1910, 1913, 1928, 1951, 1986-87, 1987-88, and 2019-20 seasons. They actually won the 1909, 1986-87, and 2019-20 editions and in the rest they finished as runners-up. As you see, the most recent edition of Copa del Rey Real Sociedad have won is the 2019-20 edition where they managed to beat Athletic Bilbao 1-0 and on a goal scored from the penalty spot in 63th minutes. And the best win Real Sociedad have ever had in the Copa del Rey history was in 1909 where they managed to beat Espanyol 3-1 and become champions.

Real Betis (2 Trophies)

Near the end of the list of

clubs with most Copa del Rey trophies won

, Real Betis have won only two Copa del Rey trophies during their history. They have also finished twice as runners-up in the major Spanish competition which sums up to four times for them where they made it to become one of the finalists of the competition. Real Betis actually won the 1976-77 and 2004-05 editions of Copa del Rey and finished as runners-up in 1931 and 1996-97 editions. As you see, the latest Copa del Rey Real Betis won was actually in 2004-05 season where they managed to beat Osasuna 2-1 in the final and after extra time to become champions. It is actually Real Betis’ best win in a Copa del Rey final during the competition’s history, though they also once beat Real Madrid 4-0 - actually in 1946-47 season - but in the round of last-16.

Deportivo La Coruna (2 Trophies)

The only club on the list of clubs with most Copa del Rey trophies won who have never finished as runners-up in the Copa del Rey competitions, Deportivo La Coruna have only won 2 Copa del Rey trophies in their history and in 1994-95 and 2001-2002 seasons. To win the former, they actually beat Valencia 2-1 and the latter Real Madrid with the same results. As it’s clear, Deportivo La Coruna’s best win in a Copa del Rey final is the same result they got against Valencia and Real Madrid, however, they also managed to beat the lower-tier club, Racing de Santander, 5-0 once in the intermediate stage of the 1931-32 edition of Copa del Rey. This is actually their best result ever in the Copa del Rey history.

Arenas (1 Trophy)

Currently competing in the fourth tier of Spanish football league system (RFEF – Group 2),

have only won one Copa del Rey trophy during their history - actually in 1919, and we think, they must be thankful of it. As you might have guessed, this has not happened recently since not only their but also other lower-tier teams’ chances for winning a Copa del Rey trophy has been reduced to zero due to the dominance of La Liga clubs. Well, back to Arenas, they have also finished as runners-up in the Copa del Rey competitions three times, namely in 1917, 1925, and 1927. You might get surprised if you know that the best result Arenas got in the Copa del Rey history was in the same year they won the major Spanish trophy (1919) where they managed to beat Barcelona 5-2 in the final and become champions, however, you should also consider that the then Barcelona is not even comparable to their today’s team.

Mallorca (1 Trophy)

Mallorca are currently competing in La Liga, but like some top La Liga clubs, it’s not where they have always competed in. In fact, they have had the experience of competing in even the third and fourth tiers of the Spanish football league system and for quite a time moving from one to the other and back. Anyway, let’s see how their Copa del Rey stats are like. Mallorca have only won one Copa del Rey trophy, actually in 2002-03 season, and they have also finished twice as runners-up in the major Spanish competition which took place in 1990-91 and 1997-98 seasons. To win their only Copa del Rey trophy, Mallorca actually beat another lower-tier club, namely Recreativo de Huelva, 3-0 in the 2002-03 Copa del Rey final which is actually their best win ever in the history of the major Spanish competition.

Other Clubs That Have Won no Copa del Rey Trophy but Have Finished as Runners-up at Least Once

Here is a list of other Spanish clubs that although they haven’t won any Copa del Rey trophy, they have finished as runners-up at least once in the major Spanish competition. Please note that in the list below, the years or seasons in front of the name of each club represent the actual years or seasons that club has finished as runners-up in the history of Copa del Rey competition.

• Espanol de Madrid, 1904, 1909, 1910

• Celta Vigo, 1947-48, 1993-04, 2000-01

• Sporting Gijon, 1981, 1982

• Real Valladolid, 1949-50, 1988-89

• Getafe, 2006-07, 2007-08

• Bizcaya, 1907

• Real Vigo Sporting, 1908

• Gimnastica, 1912

• Espanya de Barcelona, 1914

• CE Europa, 1923

• Sabadell, 1935

• Racing de Ferrol, 1938-39

• Granada, 1958-59

• Elche, 1969

• Castellon, 1972-73

• Las Palmas, 1977-78

• Real Madrid Castilla, 1979-80

• Recreativo, 2002-03

• Osasuna, 2004-05

• Alaves, 2016-17

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