UEFA Youth League final preview: Club Brugge vs Real Madrid

Club Brugge play Real Madrid in the 2026 UEFA Youth League final at Stade de la Tuilière, Lausanne, on Monday 20 April.

The lowdown

These teams won five of their six league phase games and were only separated by goal difference in the final standings, Club Brugge finishing third and Madrid fourth. No team in that round conceded fewer than Club Brugge's three goals, and having kept four clean sheets in those six games, they added two more in the knockout phase. They did concede late in their semi-final against Benfica but were already 3-0 up at that stage, Laurens Goemaere, Andre Garcia and Yanis Musuayi on target against a team that ended their campaign with a competition-record 39 strikes.

Club Brugge are Belgium's first Youth League finalists, and indeed the first Belgian side to reach the final of any UEFA club competition since Action 21 Charleroi won the 2004/05 UEFA Futsal Cup (before any of this Club Brugge squad were born). In football, Belgium's last major club successes were Mechelen's 1987/88 European Cup Winners' Cup and UEFA Super Cup victories. For Monday's final, Club Brugge will welcome Naïm Amengai and Lucas Delorge back from suspension but will be without Jakke Van Britsom, who was sent off at the end of the win against Benfica.

Madrid had lost three of their four semi-finals before Friday, but a late Liberto Navascués equaliser and a trio of shoot-out saves from Javier Navarro helped them to come through against Paris Saint-Germain and keep alive their hopes of emulating their 2019/20 Youth League title triumph. Should they prevail against Club Brugge, Madrid will be the competition's third multiple winners after Barcelona (who secured a third crown last season) and Chelsea.

Expert predictions from Nyon

Brecht Schelstraete, Club Brugge reporter
The semi-final win was the perfect lesson ahead of the final. After a shaky start, Club Brugge found their rhythm after scoring their first goal. Should they show that same resilience from the kick-off against Real Madrid, anything is possible.

There is no shortage of confidence as they aim to become the first Belgian club to win a UEFA competition trophy since 1988. "We have that same belief for the final," captain Laurens Goemaere told UEFA. Playmaker Tian Koren added: "We are playing to win; that is our only focus."

Juan Díaz, Real Madrid reporter
Real Madrid are riding high after a spectacular semi-final shoot-out success, though they know Club Brugge will pose a major challenge, especially with their "runs behind the defence", as Liberto Navascués (scorer of the semi-final equaliser) told me.

Madrid are committed to giving it their all and describe themselves as a family, and the unity – and strength – of that group will be key. The opportunity to lift the trophy, 2,069 days after the generation led by Raúl González did the same, is one they will be eager to seize.

Views from the camps

Laurens Goemaere, Club Brugge captain: "Playing the final against Real Madrid is fantastic, of course. They are a big name in football, perhaps even the biggest. So, that only makes us more motivated to surprise them and show them how good 'little Club Brugge' from Belgium are.

"I expect a really tough match, against a strong side. It will be a match where both sides will have their chances and we will both show our qualities. For the neutral fans, it will be a fantastic match."

Tian Koren, Club Brugge midfielder: "[At the start of the knockout phase] we were underdogs and that's what motivated us even more to be here. And now we believe we're going to win it and we'll try our best.

"It would mean a lot [to win]. Playing this type of competition is very nice. It's also kind of a dream. We worked very hard for this moment and we'll give our all in the final."

Javier Navarro, Real Madrid goalkeeper: "We know [Club Brugge] are a very strong team. They are coming off a lot of wins and, if I am not mistaken, they have only lost one game in the Youth League so far. They also beat Atlético de Madrid 4-0. We expect a very tough and very competitive match. We have an idea of how they play, and we are ready to go out there and try to beat them.

"I had never felt that kind of joy [that we experienced after making it past Paris] – to reach a final! I'm just happy for the team, for all the hard work we've put in over these months."

Liberto Navascués, Real Madrid defender: "We know it's going to be a very tough match. It's a Youth League final – if [Club Brugge have] made it this far, it's because they have quality. We know they're a team that attacks space a lot, so we have to be very alert in those situations and then play our game.

"We know that if we win this competition, we'll write our names into the club's history books, and that's the best thing there is."

Possible line-ups

Club Brugge: Vanden Driessche; Elbay, Verlinden, Goemaere, Garcia; Okon, Amengai, Da Silva; Koren, Jensen, Musuayi

Doubtful: None
Out: Van Britsom (suspended), Vandeperre (ankle)

Real Madrid: Javier Navarro; Jesus Fortea, Joan Martínez, Victor Valdepeñas, Alvaro Lezcano; Cestero, Diego Martínez, Carlos Díez; Daniel Yáñez, Jacobo Ortega, Alexis Ciria

Doubtful: Diego Aguado (wrist)
Out: Roberto Martín (knee)