Schalke vs. Real Madrid: Pre-season friendly build-up and live blog

Newly promoted Schalke welcome 15-time UEFA Champions League winners Real Madrid to the Veltins-Arena on Sunday 16 August (kick-off: 5pm CEST) in one of the most eagerly anticipated pre-season friendlies of the summer.

José Mourinho’s team travel to Gelsenkirchen to celebrate the 25th anniversary of Schalke's home, which was officially opened on 13 August 2001. The game marks the Royal Blues' final warm-up match ahead of their DFB Cup first-round tie at Regionalliga side Hallescher FC on Monday 24 August.

"We're really looking forward to playing our final pre-season friendly against such a top-class opponent," said Frank Baumann, Schalke's board member for sport. "We also know that Schalke fans can't wait to see such a blockbuster friendly at the Veltins-Arena.

Latest updates

1:55

Watch: Raúl's top five Schalke goals

2:00

Watch: Huntelaar's top five Schalke goals

Schalke & Madrid legend

Seven players have featured for both clubs. Legendary Spanish striker Raúl scored 40 goals in 98 Schalke appearances following a trophy-laden spell at Madrid, while Mesut Özil made his professional debut with the Royal Blues before eventually moving to Spain. Klaas-Jan Huntelaar and Hamit Altintop are among the other names to have represented both sides.

© PATRIK STOLLARZ/AFP via Getty Images

Memorable encounters

Schalke have faced Madrid four times in the UEFA Champions League down the years. Los Blancos registered a 9-2 aggregate victory in the last 16 of the 2013/14 competition, before edging through 5-4 on aggregate at the same stage of the following edition - but not before the Royal Blues had given them a proper scare in the second leg with a remarkable 4-3 victory at Estadio Santiago Bernabéu.

© imago sportfotodienst/imago/Jan Huebner

Real Madrid: Pre-season so far

Italian club Fiorentina are the only side Madrid have failed to beat this summer. José Mourinho's men have triumphed over Alcorcón (1-0), Leganés (4-1), Ferencváros (2-1) and Deportivo de A Coruña (1-0), but Schalke are certain to provide a stern test.

© David Balogh

Schalke: Pre-season so far

The Royal Blues' 3-0 defeat to Serie A side Atalanta on Saturday ended a run of four straight pre-season victories for Miron Muslić's side, against Erzgebirge Aue (4-2), Metalist Kharkiv (2-0), Fagiano Okayama (3-1) and Hessen Kassel (5-0). They began their preparations for the 2026/27 season with a 2-1 defeat to Gütersloh back on 11 July.

© IMAGO/Maik Hölter/TEAM2sportphoto

Welcome along!

Hello and thank you for joining us for build-up and live match coverage of Schalke's highly anticipated pre-season friendly against Real Madrid at the Veltins-Arena.

About the clubs

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VELTINS-Arena