Honestly, if you ask a casual fan about Spanish football, they’ll probably just say "Real Madrid or Barcelona." And they aren't exactly wrong. But there is so much more to the la liga winners list than just the two-headed monster of the Clásico. Since the league kicked off in 1929, we've seen everything from Basque dominance to a one-hit wonder in Galicia that ended up in the third division two decades later.
It’s a wild history.
Right now, as we sit in 2026, Barcelona is the reigning champ. They took the 2024-25 crown under Hansi Flick, which was their 28th title. It was a big statement, especially after Real Madrid had basically looked untouchable the year before. But even with Barça's recent trophy lift, the white side of Madrid still holds the record with a massive 36 titles.
The Total Counts: Who Actually Has the Trophies?
When you look at the all-time winners, it's a very short list. Only nine teams have ever actually won the thing. Think about that—nearly a century of football, and only nine clubs have reached the top.
Here is how the leaderboard looks right now:
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- Real Madrid: 36 titles (The undisputed kings of consistency)
- FC Barcelona: 28 titles (Dominant in the Messi era and finding their feet again)
- Atlético Madrid: 11 titles (The ultimate "third wheel" that refuses to go away)
- Athletic Bilbao: 8 titles (The giants of the early years)
- Valencia: 6 titles (Last won in 2004 under Rafa Benítez)
- Real Sociedad: 2 titles (Back-to-back winners in the early 80s)
- Sevilla: 1 title (1945-46)
- Real Betis: 1 title (1934-35)
- Deportivo La Coruña: 1 title (The legendary "Super Depor" of 1999-2000)
That Weird Era Before the Civil War
Before the Spanish Civil War hit the pause button on the league from 1936 to 1939, things looked a lot different. Athletic Bilbao was the team to beat. They weren't just winning; they were destroying people. In 1931, they beat Barcelona 12-1. That is not a typo. Twelve to one.
They won four of the first eight seasons. Real Madrid (then called Madrid FC because of the Second Republic) only had two. Barcelona had one—the very first one in 1929. It wasn't until the 1950s that the power dynamic shifted toward the capital.
Why the 1960s Changed Everything
If you want to know why Real Madrid has such a lead on the la liga winners list, you have to look at the 60s. They won eight titles in ten years. They had this five-in-a-row streak from 1961 to 1965 that basically demoralized the rest of the country.
People talk about the "Dream Team" or the "Galacticos," but the 1960s Madrid side was a machine.
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Then you have the 80s. This is the decade everyone forgets. For six straight years, the big two didn't win. Real Sociedad won twice, then Athletic Bilbao won twice. It was a Basque takeover. Real Madrid finally broke the streak with their "Quinta del Buitre" generation, winning five straight titles to end the decade.
The Modern Era and the "Third Way"
Lately, it’s been a lot of trading blows. Since the turn of the millennium, Barcelona has actually been more successful in terms of pure league titles than Real Madrid, mostly thanks to a guy named Lionel Messi. He changed the math.
But Diego Simeone’s Atlético Madrid is the real story for me. They won in 2013-14 and again in 2020-21. In a league where the financial gap is a literal canyon, what Atleti did—winning the league at the Camp Nou on the final day in 2014—is probably the most impressive feat on this entire list.
The Depor Miracle
You can't talk about winners without mentioning Deportivo La Coruña in 2000. They weren't supposed to be there. They had players like Djalminha and Roy Makaay who played with a sort of "who cares" attitude that completely rattled the giants. It’s kinda sad seeing them in the lower divisions now, but that 1999-2000 season is immortal.
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What Most People Get Wrong About La Liga
The biggest misconception is that it’s "boring" because the same teams win.
Sure, the names at the top of the la liga winners list don't change much. But the way they win does. We’ve moved from the high-flying "Dream Team" of Cruyff in the 90s to the defensive rigidity of Simeone, and now back to the high-pressing, vertical style of Flick’s Barcelona.
Also, people think Real Madrid only cares about the Champions League. That’s a myth. Ask any Madridista—losing the domestic league to Barcelona hurts way more than any European glory can fix in the short term.
Key Takeaways for the Fans:
If you are tracking the league history, keep these three things in mind:
- Check the points records: Real Madrid and Jose Mourinho hit 100 points in 2012; Tito Vilanova’s Barça matched it a year later. That is the ceiling.
- Look at the "Pichichi": The top scorer usually plays for the winner, but not always. Messi’s 50-goal season in 2012 didn't actually win him the league.
- The "Big Three" is a real thing: Since 2004, only Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Atlético Madrid have won the title. We are currently in the longest "drought" for outside teams in Spanish history.
If you want to keep up with the current season (2025-26), watch how the points gap evolves in February. That’s usually when the eventual winner on the la liga winners list starts to pull away from the pack.
Actionable Insight: If you’re a bettor or a hardcore analyst, look at the head-to-head results between the top four. In Spain, if two teams finish level on points, the title isn't decided by overall goal difference, but by the results of the matches played between those two specific teams. It changes the entire strategy of the final weeks.