Which Club Has Won the Most Copa Del Rey Titles?

La Liga is the top-flight football division in Spain: the Primera División. La Liga is the second-most-watched domestic league in the world after the English Premier League. Futbol Club Barcelona is one of the best clubs in the world and the second-most successful in Spain. However, Real Madrid have won the most La Liga titles. Los Blancos have won thirty-six titles. 

F.C. Barcelona has won the second-most titles, winning twenty-seven. Real Madrid is also the most decorated football club in European and Spanish football. However, they have not won the most Copa del Rey titles. SportsBoom explored the archives to find the club with the most  Copa del Rey titles.

Barcelona: A History of Success

Barcelona is steeped in history and success. They have won the most domestic trophies, including the most Copa del Rey titles. Formed in 1899, the football club has become a symbol of Catalan culture. Unlike many football clubs around the globe, the Blaugrana do not have an owner. 

Instead, the club has a president. Barcelona is a registered association, not a limited company, where people can become shareholders. However, people can become members called socios. Barcelona is Real Madrid’s fiercest rivals. Together, the two super clubs make up El Clásico. It is a match so heated it divides the sporting world. Barcelona is the second-most successful football club in Spain. However, Barça are not far behind when it comes to silverware. 

Barcelona has won 97 major trophies in their 124-year storied history. Domestically, they have won a staggering 77 trophies, a national record. Real Madrid have won 71 domestic titles. However, Real Madrid’s European, and international success, outstrips their Catalan rivals. Los Blancos have won an unprecedented 102 trophies. Madrid is the best team in La Liga. They are the defending league and European champions. 

Barcelona players celebrate beside their three thophys//Getty

The Catalans have nine fewer La Liga titles than Real Madrid, and sixteen more league triumphs than third-placed Atlético Madrid, who have won eleven Spanish championships. They are a European powerhouse, winning five European Cup/UEFA Champions League titles. They have won the fifth-most in Champions League titles, but ten fewer than the “Kings of Europe.”

Three FIFA World Club Cup titles are in the trophy cabinet, but the club never won the Intercontinental Cup. Barcelona dominate Catalan regional competitions. They have won twenty-three Catalan Football Championships, eight Copa Catalunya, and two Supercopa de Catalunya titles, all records. 

FC Barcelona players celebrating//Getty

Kings of the Cup: Barcelona Copa Del Rey Title Success

Domestic cup success is a given at the Camp Nou. Barcelona have played in 42 Copa del Rey finals. The Catalan club has won a record 31 Copa del Rey titles, eleven more than Real Madrid. They have lost eleven of the forty-two showpiece events, the third-most in Spain. Barça first won the tournament in the 1909-10 season. They last held the title in 2020-21. 

Surprisingly, Athletic Club Bilbao has won the second-most Copa del Rey titles. The Basque club has won twenty-four titles, four more than Real Madrid. However, Bilbao and Madrid have played in forty Copa finals each. Athletic Club lost sixteen finals, Madrid twenty. 

Andres Iniesta of FC Barcelona lifts the trophy//Getty

Club Atlético de Madrid is the only other Spanish club with double-digit Copa del Rey titles. They have won ten finals, losing nine. Bilbao are the current holders. They knocked Barcelona out in the quarterfinals, beating them 4-2 after extra time in 2024. 

The Copa del Rey is not the only trophy that Barcelona has a monopoly on. They have claimed the Supercopa de España a record fourteen times. The Catalans have also won the Copa Eva Duarte three times and the Copa de la Liga twice, both record domestic successes. 

Lionel Messi of FC Barcelona lifts the trophy//Getty

Lionel Messi: The Best Player in Copa Del Rey History

Lionel Messi is not only the best Argentina footballer ever, he is the best footballer of all time. He is the second-highest scorer in football history. Not surprisingly, he is the highest scorer in La Liga history. However, he’s only the fourth-highest scorer in Copa del Rey history. Josep Samitier is the Catalan club’s highest scorer in the competition and second overall. 

Messi scored 65 goals for the Blaugrana and five times for Real Madrid between 1919 and 1934. He played 80 Copa del Rey matches. He scored 56 goals, providing 36 assists. Messi and Sergio Busquets played in the most finals (10). They are two of five players to win the most Copa del Rey titles, winning the tournament seven times. 

Messi holds the record for most goals in a “The King’s Cup” final, netting nine times. The Argentina playmaker scored in seven finals and has provided the most assists in tournament history. This is not a revelation. Messi has the most assists in football history. He has also won (another record) three ‘Player of the Match’ awards.