2025/26 Copa del Rey schedule

That will see some big top-flight clubs head to tiny municipal stadiums in every corner of Spain. A number of those sides will be up against sixth-tier opponents. That includes struggling Real Sociedad who visit Galicia to play SD Negreira, Alaves who have a Basque derby against Getxo, and Real Betis who face fellow Andalusians Atletico Palma del Rio.

Week of Tuesday 16th December 2025 – Barca, Real Madrid, Atleti & Athletic enter

Holders Barcelona enter at the third-round stage, along with the other clubs involved in the Spanish Supercopa – Real Madrid, Atletico Madrid and Athletic Club. Seeding makes it likely that they will all travel to clubs in the third tier or lower.

At this stage in last season’s competition, Barcelona won 4-0 away to Barbastro, meanwhile Real Madrid were 5-0 victors in Cartagena against Minera. However, there were also a few upsets, with fourth-tier Pontevedra beating Mallorca 3-0 in Galicia, while Ourense knocked out Real Valladolid 3-2.

Week of Tuesday 3rd February 2026 – Quarter-finals

While clubs do frequently rotate and rest players during the earlier rounds of the Copa del Rey, just about everyone is taking it seriously by the time the quarter-finals roll around. 

There have been some cracking last-eight ties in recent years. In 2024, Iñaki Williams memorably jetted in from AFCON duty just in time to help inspire Athletic to a 4-2 extra-time win over Barca. They went on to win the competition.

Meanwhile, Real Madrid needed a 93rd-minute goal from Gonzalo Garcia to seal a 3-2 derby victory against Leganes at Butarque last term.

Week of Tuesday 3rd March 2026 – Semi-final second legs

The semi-finals take place during a busy period on the Spanish football calendar, when a number of clubs will also be in European knockout action.

Aside from the final itself, this is the only round when any remaining clubs from lower leagues won’t be at an advantage, given ties will be played over two legs. We’ll know the identity of the 2025/26 Copa del Rey finalists by Thursday 5th March.

Atletico Madrid have fallen at this stage in each of the last two seasons. They lost 4-0 on aggregate to Athletic Club in 2023/24. Last term, they were involved in an extraordinary 4-4 first-leg draw away against Barcelona, before losing the second leg 1-0 at the Estadio Metropolitano.

The other 2024/25 semi-final ended up with the same aggregate score, with Real Madrid winning 1-0 away to Real Sociedad, before the clubs shared eight goals in the second leg at the Bernabeu.

Saturday 25th April 2026 – Copa del Rey final in Seville

The Estadio La Cartuja in Seville is now the established venue for the Copa del Rey final, and it will again host this season’s edition. While unpopular with some, it can accommodate around 70,000 fans, with supporters now much closer to the pitch following recent renovation work at what has become one of the most important Spanish stadiums.

This season, Cartuja is also the home ground for Real Betis, and Los Verdiblancos will be one of the leading contenders to make it to the final of a competition they won as recently as 2022.

Mark is a freelance football writer based in Madrid, and the editor of LaLigaExpert.com. He has been covering LaLiga and European football since 2014.