Real Madrid ended the year with a convincing home win over Sevilla.
Spanish soccer giant Real Madrid has ended the 2024 top of the table when taking into account results by calendar year, beating off competition from rivals FC Barcelona and Atlético Madrid to end the year with 90 points from a possible 114.
Los Blancos have lost only two of their 38 games this year, against Barcelona in October and Athletic Club in early December, with nine draws and 27 victories. With 90 points, they have recorded their best calendar year since 2021, when the side ended the year on 97 points having played an additional three league games.
In doing so, they scored 89 goals, second only to Barcelona’s 96 goals scored, and conceded 33 goals, fewer than any other side to play in La Liga for the full 2024 calendar year.
That return is enough to ensure that Real Madrid kept a lead over Barcelona, who end the year on 85 points despite having played one more game, taking their possible total to 117. They were also ahead of Atlético Madrid, who finished up with 79 points.
At present, Real Madrid sits second in the La Liga table, one point behind leaders Atlético Madrid. Last season, they won the title with 95 points, some 10 points ahead of runners-up Barcelona.
2024 La Liga table compared to 2023
Real Madrid is the only side from last season’s top six to increase their points tally in 2024. Real Madrid came third in the 2023 calendar-year table with 85 points, some five fewer than this year, while Atlético Madrid and Barcelona ended on 88 points.
Some of the biggest changes come from surprise package Girona, who have brought in 16 points fewer than in 2023, and Real Sociedad, who have dropped 19 points compared to last year. Both have struggled with the sale of key players and the demands of European competitions in the 2024/25 campaign.
At the other end of the table, Getafe has the lowest point total of any side to play the full year in the division with 33, down 18 points from their return of 51 in 2023. Ahead of them are Las Palmas, who were promoted in 2023, and Valencia, who recorded only 38 points.
Athletic Club’s historic calendar year
Among the rest of the chasing pack in La Liga, one of the storylines is that of Athletic Club. The Basque side won the Copa del Rey, but have also enjoyed a historic year in league competition. They rank fourth with 69 points, doing so 29 wins over the course of the year. That is the highest percentage of games won in a calendar year since 1982. They have also only lost eight matches in the league, their lowest number since 1956.
Coach Ernesto Valverde has done a remarkable job at San Mamés and has got the best out of the side to improve their form this year. A current 14-game unbeaten run has aided their attempts, matching their best unbeaten run of 2023 and ranking joint-fifth in their all-time longest ever unbeaten run.
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