LaLiga

LaLiga Standings 25/26 J8: Barça Lets Leadership Slip Away

Published New:5/10/2025 - 20:00h

Updated New:5/10/2025 - 23:59h

Barça's defeat in Seville (4-1) allowed Real Madrid to maintain their LaLiga lead on matchday 8. The 'culés' go into the break in second place, 2 points behind 'los blancos'.

FC Barcelona was unable to maintain its lead in LaLiga EA Sports 2025/26 on matchday 8. On Sunday, the team led by Hansi Flick suffered a heavy defeat on their visit to Sevilla (4-1), in a match to forget for the Barça side at the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán.

The 'culés' had regained the top spot in the standings in the previous matchday, taking advantage of Real Madrid's resounding defeat against Atlético (5-2) and their narrow victory against Real Sociedad (2-1). However, the 'merengues' recovered this weekend by defeating Villarreal (3-1).

This result, along with Barça's defeat in Nervión, puts the 'Casa Blanca' back in the lead with 21 points, a couple more than the Catalans (19). The 'Yellow Submarine', despite the defeat at the Santiago Bernabéu, remains third with 16 points.

LaLiga EA Sports 2025/26 standings on matchday 8

Pos.	Club	MP	PTS	GD
1️⃣	Real Madrid	8	21	10
2️⃣	FC Barcelona	8	19	13
3️⃣	Villarreal	8	16	6
4️⃣	Betis	8	15	5
5️⃣	Atlético	8	13	5
6️⃣	Sevilla	8	13	4

Check the complete standings table at FCBN.

Tough defeat for Barça in Seville: goodbye to the undefeated streak and no leadership

Barcelona thrashed in Seville and loses the LaLiga lead (4-1)

For Barça, the visit to the Ramón Sánchez Pizjuán was a real nightmare. The "culés" hadn't lost at the Sevillian stadium since 2015, but on Sunday they didn't complete a good first half in a match that featured a very poor performance by referee Alejandro Muñiz Ruiz.

The Galician referee tipped the balance in favor of the Andalusians by whistling a very dubious penalty by Ronald Araujo on Isaac Romero in the 11th minute. Ex-Barça player Alexis Sánchez was in charge of kicking, sealing the 1-0 in the 13th minute. Then, in the 36th minute, Romero himself made it 2-0 for the locals, in another action preceded by a foul by Suazo on Koundé that was not sanctioned.

Barça, against the ropes, scored in the 45+7' with a great goal by Marcus Rashford and, in the 75th minute, had an unbeatable opportunity to equalize the score. Januzaj ran over Balde inside the area, but Robert Lewandowski missed the penalty, with a right-footed shot that went wide of the post.

Roony Bardghji also had two clear chances in the final stretch, both neutralized by Vlachodimos after the Swede's finishes were too straightforward. In the 90th minute, José Carmona sealed the match with a lethal counterattack from Sevilla. To make matters worse, Akor Adams made it four in the 90+6th minute, with Barcelona completely broken in defense.

Real Madrid did their homework against Villarreal with an arbitration 'push'

Vinicius Jr. celebrating one of his goals against Villarreal (3-1)

Real Madrid returned to winning ways in the tournament on Saturday with a home victory against Villarreal (3-1), thanks to goals from Vinicius Jr. (brace) and Kylian Mbappé, as well as favors from the main referee Guillermo Cuadra Fernández. The Balearic referee did his thing, with a penalty for 'Los Blancos' and a red card for their opponent.

The match ended goalless in the first half, but began to tilt to the 'merengue' side in the 49th minute. A shot by Vini, breaking down the left, deflected off Comesaña to surprise Arnau Tenas. Then, in the 70th minute, the Brazilian extended the lead by scoring a penalty that he himself had provoked.

Villarreal pulled one back in the 73rd minute with a great goal from Georges Mikautadze, but the sending off of Santiago Mouriño in the 77th minute left the 'Yellow Submarine' very exposed at the back. The defender was already on a yellow card and Cuadra Fernández ended up showing him the second yellow for a slight foul. In the 80th minute, Mbappé sealed the match after a good one-two with Brahim Díaz.

More matches from matchday 8 of LaLiga

Thus, Real Madrid has 21 points, a couple more than FC Barcelona, after eight full rounds. Athletic, meanwhile, also climbed positions thanks to its victory against Mallorca (2-1).

On Saturday, Levante (0-2 in Oviedo) and Girona (2-1 against Valencia) also won. For Míchel's team, it was the first victory of the season, a result that allows them to leave the bottom of the table.

On Sunday, in addition to Sevilla-Barça, Alavés-Elche was also played early, resulting in a 3-1 victory for Vitoria. Later on, Espanyol-Betis was played, a dramatic match that ended with a 2-1 comeback for the Betis and a missed penalty in stoppage time.

In San Sebastián, Real Sociedad-Rayo earned the Madrid side three points, while the San Sebastián side dropped to 19th in the standings. Celta-Atlético (1-1) closes Matchday 8. LaLiga will resume the weekend of October 17-19, following the international break.