Senß in the centre & Schröder in attack: Real examined

At Real Madrid, white is not simply a kit colour. It's a promise, a mark of identity, a symbol of high standards. For decades, the name of the club has been synonymous with triumphs and dramas, with European nights on which history was made. On Wednesday evening (18:45 CET), that legacy comes to Unterhaching – but this time it's the women in the spotlight. The Spanish side come up against FC Bayern Women at the Sportpark as two of European football's biggest names meet for the first time in the UEFA Women's Champions League .

It's primarily the men who have made Real Madrid one of the most illustrious names in world football. The women's team makes up a more recent chapter in this history – with the aim of establishing themselves in Europe and adding their own successes to the famous crest. Ahead of Matchday 3 in the league phase, we examine Las Blancas in more detail.

From a manifesto to the Primera División

The story doesn't begin with bang, but with an idea that gradually gained traction over the years. On 1 July 2020, Real Madrid Femenino was officially established. Yet its roots go back a long way – to Ana Rossell, who believed early on that women should also wear the famous white jersey. In 1997, at the age of just 17, Rossell went to then president Lorenzo Sanz. Her request was daring and clear: Real Madrid should form a women's team. But the doors she knocked on initially opened only a crack. Her plea also fell on deaf ears among Sanz's successors.

Rossell didn't let that discourage her. In 2014, she took the matter into her own hands and founded the women's football club CD Tacón in Madrid. Two years later, she reiterated her call, this time in collaboration with one of Real Madrid's largest fan clubs: in a manifesto, they called for the club to establish its own women's football division. The journey continued – and ultimately led to success. In the 2018/19 season, CD Tacón were promoted to Spain's top flight, the Primera División. On 25 June 2019, Real Madrid announced its intention to establish its own women's football division. Three months later, the general assembly gave the project its blessing by a clear majority: 810 out of 894 votes were in favour of integrating CD Tacón. And so, an idea pursued with tenacity ultimately became part of the club's footballing history.

Already in their first season, Real Madrid stepped out of the shadow of their refoundation, finishing the season in second place behind FC Barcelona. What seemed at first a promising start would become the fixed order in Spanish women's football over the coming years. Only in the 2021/22 campaign did Real have to settle for third place; otherwise, they've always maintained their status as the second-best team in the country.

This rise was made possible not least by the whole club's willingness to invest in the fledgling project. Right from the start, the club managed to bring highly experienced players to Madrid, such as Swedish pair Kosovare Asllani and Sofia Jakobsson as well as the German Babett Peter. In the 2020/21 season, two promising Spanish talents, Olga Carmona and Misa Rodríguez, joined the squad, while further seasoned pros from the Primera División bolstered the line-up. Yet to this day, an overpowering shadow looms over Madrid: that of Barcelona. As yet, there has been no getting past the Catalans. As a result, Real are still waiting for the first trophy in the club's history.

We spoke with Melanie Leupolz ahead of the first Champions League meeting between two of her former clubs:

Las Blancas burst onto the biggest stage in Europe in just their second season, qualifying for the Women's Champions League and reaching the quarter-finals after finishing second in the group stage. There they came up against none other than Barcelona – and that's where the journey ended. In the seasons that followed, it was shorter and Real failed to advance beyond the group stage.

That was until 2024/25, when the Madrid team made it back to the last eight, before being beaten by eventual winners Arsenal. Last season, they again reached the quarter-finals after finishing seventh in the league phase, and once again arch-rivals Barça stood in their way. The rematch turned into a painful lesson for Real, who were thrashed 6-2 and 6-0 over the two legs. Madrid have started the current UWCL campaign with two 1-1 draws against Paris Saint-Germain and Manchester City.

When Bayern take on Real on Wednesday evening, they'll not only be coming up against a big name of European football but also some familiar faces. There are no fewer than three former Bayern players in the Madrid squad: Arianna Caruso, Sara Däbritz and Lineth Beerensteyn. Caruso moved just this summer to the Spanish capital – a reunion that gives the fixture a personal touch. And there are plenty of other names that are well know to German football fans, including former national team goalkeeper Merle Frohms, Elisa Senß, who joined Real from Eintracht Frankfort in the summer, and Janou Levels, who arrived from VfL Wolfsburg. So while Real Madrid may be new opponents to Bayern in the competition, they're far from being unknown.

Experience meets youthful exuberance in coach Pau Quesada's squad. One player who's long been a face of the team is Athenea del Castillo: the 25-year-old has worn the white shirt since 2021 and is now the club's record appearance maker. She likes to attack down the wing, where her pace is a threat. Linda Caicedo also gives shine to the Madrid attack: the 21-year-old Colombian is one of the most glittering figures in international women's football and is regarded as one of the greatest talents of her generation.

Fresh impetus comes from Felicia Schröder, who moved to Madrid from Swedish club BK Häcken in the summer. At just 19, she's already made a name for herself, netting six times in her first five league games. Therefore, the Bayern Women defence have the task of containing Madrid's attacking drive. Germany international Senß provides experience in the heart of midfield – and helps to link the team's young talents with the high standards that Real Madrid set on every stage.

Munich and Madrid have met just once before, in a pre-season friendly last summer. The German double winners laid down an early marker with a comfortable 4-1 victory at the FC Bayern Campus, with Georgia Stanway, Linda Dallmann , Momoko Tanikawa and Natalia Padilla Bidas on the scoresheet for Bayern. That means nothing for Wednesday, though. At Sportpark Unterhaching, José Barcala's side will encounter a different Real Madrid: one that drew additional resolve from that defeat – and wants to write its own story on the European stage.

🎟️ Get your tickets for FC Bayern Women vs. Real Madrid here ! You can apply for tickets for the match against Barcelona here !