The Spain international and former Bayern Leverkusen manager, has signed a three-year contract with Real Madrid. The 43-year-old spent two and a half years in Germany in what was his first senior head coaching role.
Alonso replaces Carlo Ancelotti, the five-time Champions League winner, who has departed the Bernabeu after a second spell to become head coach of the Brazil national team following the dismissal of Dorival Junior after the 4-1 defeat to Argentina in March.
Read: Carlo Ancelotti leaves Real Madrid, signs Brazil contract
In his announcement, Alonso said it was the “right moment” to leave having guided them to the Bundesliga title in the 2023/24 season — the first in the club’s history. Leverkusen were only beaten in the Europa League in the final by Atalanta, while their domestic run finally ended after 462 days with defeat by RB Leipzig in September 2024.
Leverkusen finished second in the Bundesliga behind Bayern Munich in the 2024/25 campaign. They were knocked out of the Champions League after a 5-0 aggregate defeat by Bayern in the round-of-16.
Xabi Alonso’s unmatched legacy
Alonso’s playing career started at Real Sociedad and also took in spells with Rafael Benitez at Liverpool as well as with Pep Guardiola at Bayern. He played 236 times for Real Madrid after joining from Liverpool in 2009. During that time, he won La Liga, the Champions League and two Copas del Rey.Alonso also won the World Cup in 2010 and the European Championship twice — in 2008 and 2012 — with Spain.
Following his retirement in 2017, he began his managerial career at Real Sociedad B in 2019 before moving on to Leverkusen in October 2022.
Alonso took over with the club in the relegation zone before guiding them to a sixth-placed finish. He was rewarded with a new contract in May 2023 that tied him down to June 2026.
Ancelotti on the other hand, won two La Liga titles and three Champions Leagues during two spells in charge at the Bernabeu. He has also won the Copa del Rey twice as well as the FIFA Intercontinental Cup in December.
Read: Xabi Alonso eyes Bundesliga record ahead of final Leverkusen game
Xabi Alonso: The beginning of a new era
Alonso’s first games in charge will come at the Club World Cup which begins in the United States next month, with Madrid drawn in Group H alongside Al Hilal, Pachuca and Red Bull Salzburg.
Madrid were knocked out of this season’s Champions League following a 5-1 aggregate defeat by Arsenal, losing at the quarter-final stage of the competition for the first time since 2004. They also lost four times to rivals Barcelona across Spain’s three domestic competitions, and at the Copa del Ray final.
With the win against Real Sociedad on Saturday, Madrid finished the La Liga campaign in second place behind Barcelona, who had clinched the La Liga title earlier this month. The game saw Ancelotti bid farewell to the Bernabeu before he begins work with Brazil on Monday. The Italian’s first games in charge of his new side come with World Cup qualifiers against Ecuador and Paraguay next month.
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