Real Madrid top the all-time list of clubs awarded the most penalties in Spanish football history, with 601, 81 ahead of rivals Barcelona, according to a statistic published Monday by the Spanish newspaper Mundo Deportivo.
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Atlético Madrid are third with 498 penalties, 103 behind their neighbors Real Madrid. Real have strengthened their historic lead after their French star Kylian Mbappé was awarded a controversial penalty against Racing Santander last Sunday.
Mbappé converted the penalty in the 11th minute to put Real ahead, before Jude Bellingham and Jean-Clair Todibo added two more goals, giving Real Madrid a 3–0 win and their sixth consecutive victory in all competitions.
The penalty sparked a refereeing debate, as several experts believed that Racing player Matteo Brattl's contact with Mbappé was not enough to warrant a foul. Real Madrid coach José Mourinho himself shared that view.
Speaking at the post-match press conference, Mourinho said he could not judge the incident from the bench, but after watching the replay on a tablet he considered the penalty incorrect, adding: "It was clear to me that it was not a penalty."
The incident opened the door to comparisons between Spanish clubs in the number of penalties they have received throughout the competition's history, and how those figures vary across different periods.
Real Madrid lead historically, but the gap shifts
According to Mundo Deportivo's figures, Real Madrid have been awarded 601 penalties since La Liga began, compared with 520 for Barcelona and 498 for Atlético Madrid.
That means Real Madrid have been awarded about 15.6% more penalties than Barcelona's historic total, and about 20.7% more than Atlético Madrid's.
In the 21st century, the gap in the newspaper's figures narrowed. Real Madrid lead the list with 235 penalties, compared with 204 for Barcelona and 171 for Athletic Bilbao.
Historical comparisons do not necessarily reflect the superiority of any one team at all stages, as shown by statistics published in 2019 by the data company Opta, covering the period from the 2005–2006 season to April 2019.
During that period, Real Madrid were awarded 122 penalties in 531 matches, compared with 121 for Barcelona over the same number of matches, a difference of just one penalty.
Sevilla were third with 103 penalties, followed by Athletic Bilbao with 95 and Atlético Madrid with 84.
These figures show that the gap between the two rivals was not constant across the different periods, and that penalty totals are affected by the length of the period being compared and the nature of the seasons included.
101 penalties for Real Madrid over the last decade
Turning to the last ten years, Real Madrid show a clearer advantage in the number of penalties awarded in their favor.
Data from Stats Perform, owner of the Opta platform, published by the Spanish newspaper AS on October 19, show that Real Madrid were awarded 101 penalties from the 2016–2017 season through the ninth round of the current season, compared with 76 for Barcelona and 57 for Atlético Madrid.
The study covered 389 matches for each team, meaning Real Madrid were awarded a penalty roughly once every 3.9 matches, compared with once every 5.1 matches for Barcelona and once every 6.8 matches for Atlético Madrid.
However, the study did not only count penalties awarded in favor of the teams, but also those the referees awarded against them.
Over the same period, referees awarded 45 penalties against Real Madrid, compared with 33 against Barcelona and 50 against Atlético.
This means the net penalty count, the difference between penalties awarded in each team's favor and those awarded against it, was 56 for Real Madrid, 43 for Barcelona and 7 for Atlético Madrid.
These figures give a broader picture than the total number of penalties awarded, as they take into account decisions taken against teams inside their own penalty areas, although they do not measure whether each individual decision was correct.
Barcelona hold the single-season record
Despite Real Madrid topping the historical list, Barcelona hold a notable record for the number of penalties awarded in a single season.
In the 2015–2016 season, the Catalan side under coach Luis Enrique were awarded 19 penalties, breaking the previous record of 16 set by Real Betis in the 1986–1987 season, according to statistics published by AS.
During Enrique's years as Barcelona coach, the team had clear periods of dominance in this regard.
In February 2017, AS revealed that Barcelona had been awarded 30 penalties since Enrique took charge about two and a half years earlier, compared with six awarded against them, a net total of 24.
In the same period, Real Madrid were awarded 27 penalties, compared with 12 against them, a net total of 15.
In the 2025–2026 season, Real Madrid topped the list again, having been awarded 14 penalties, scoring 12, compared with 10 for Barcelona, who scored seven, according to the statistical database Stats Bomb.
These comparisons show that the ranking of clubs by penalties awarded changes from season to season, even when certain clubs retain a clear advantage in the historical total.
Barcelona lead this season
Interestingly, Barcelona have been awarded more penalties than Real Madrid since the start of the current 2026–2027 season, despite the royal club's lead in the historical figures.
According to AS's data, through the end of the 11th round, Barcelona were awarded five penalties, scoring four, compared with four for Real Madrid, who scored three.
No penalty was awarded against Barcelona in their first 11 matches, while referees awarded one against Real Madrid.
As a result, Barcelona top the list of clubs awarded the most penalties this season, ahead of Real Madrid and Osasuna, who have four each.
The numbers and the refereeing debate
These new figures come amid continuing debate about Spanish refereeing, and Real Madrid's repeated criticism of decisions it considers influential in its results, particularly through content broadcast on its television channel.
However, reading penalty totals as conclusive proof that a team benefits from refereeing bias faces a basic statistical problem. The totals alone do not reveal whether decisions were correct, or how many fouls that deserved penalties were not given by referees.
Technical differences between clubs, such as possession rates, the number of times they enter the penalty area, and the nature of their attacking play, can also affect each team's chances of being awarded penalties. Evaluating these factors requires additional data.
The statistics of the last decade offer another example of the importance of separating refereeing indicators: Real Madrid lead in the net number of penalties awarded in their favor, while Barcelona lead in the net number of minutes they have played with a numerical advantage following red cards.
According to Stats Perform, Barcelona's net numerical advantage stood at 862 minutes over 389 matches, compared with a net deficit of 91 minutes for Real Madrid and a deficit of 330 minutes for Atlético Madrid.
This season, the top spot among clubs awarded the most penalties has passed to Barcelona, despite Real Madrid's lead in the historical record and in the statistics of the last decade, reflecting how the two teams' positions shift from season to season.
