Barcelona vs Real Betis on Sunday, May 17, produced one of the most emotionally loaded matches in recent La Liga memory. A 3-1 victory at the Spotify Camp Nou gave Barcelona a perfect 19-win, 19-game home record in La Liga — a feat no team in the competition’s history has ever achieved. Robert Lewandowski played his last game at Camp Nou and was thrown into the air by teammates at the final whistle. Raphinha scored twice. João Cancelo added the third. And across the city, Antoine Griezmann said goodbye to Atletico Madrid. The final day of the second-to-last round of La Liga was historic in multiple directions simultaneously.
The Historic Home Record: 19 Wins From 19 Home Matches
Spanish champion Barcelona capped a perfect season at home — 19 wins in 19 La Liga matches — with a 3-1 victory over Real Betis on Sunday. The significance of that record cannot be overstated in the context of La Liga history. No team in the competition’s history has previously won every home match across an entire season. Barcelona entered Jornada 37 knowing that the record was within reach and delivered exactly the performance required to claim it. hims
The camp Nou has been one of the most formidable venues in European football throughout the 2025-26 season. Barcelona will become the first team in La Liga history to win every home match if they see off Real Betis at the Spotify Camp Nou. Hansi Flick’s team managed it without needing a fortunate draw or a late winner. The 3-1 result was professional, controlled, and worthy of the history it created. Science Alert
Raphinha’s Free Kick: The Opening That Set the Record in Motion
Barcelona needed an early goal to settle the nerves that come with chasing a piece of history. Raphinha provided it.
Just before the half-hour mark, Raphinha netted a free kick that caught out Betis goalkeeper Álvaro Vallés in comical fashion, giving Barcelona the lead on 28 minutes. It’s not been the easiest season for Raphinha, but he is ending it on a high note. Science Alert
The free kick opener was the product of Raphinha’s continued late-season form. The Brazilian winger has been one of Flick’s most important players throughout the campaign and his direct free kicks have become a reliable weapon for Barcelona in set-piece situations. Catching the goalkeeper off his line from that range requires both the technical quality to execute and the situational awareness to spot that the goalkeeper’s position is exploitable. Raphinha had both on Sunday.
Two goals by Raphinha and one by João Cancelo kept Barcelona perfect at home in the Spanish league. The Catalan club had already clinched its second straight league title two rounds ago. With the title already secured, the only thing left to play for in the Barcelona vs Real Betis fixture was history — and the team delivered it. hims
Robert Lewandowski’s Camp Nou Farewell
The human story of the Barcelona vs Real Betis match was not in the goals or the record. It was in the final minutes and what happened after the final whistle.
Barcelona announced Saturday that the 37-year-old Lewandowski was leaving after four seasons. Lewandowski helped Barcelona win three Spanish league titles in four seasons, including this campaign, and one Copa del Rey, while scoring an impressive 119 goals in 192 appearances. It was an emotional farewell for the Poland striker, who after the match was thrown into the air by his teammates. They also lined up and applauded Lewandowski as he went toward the locker room. hims
119 goals in 192 appearances at a club he joined at 34 years old is a statistical achievement that defies easy framing. Most strikers at 34 are managing their way toward retirement. Lewandowski arrived at Barcelona at that age and won three league titles. The applause tunnel his teammates formed as he walked toward the locker room is the image of the day — the respect of peers expressed in its most direct and wordless form.
Lewandowski said: “It has been an honor to play for this club. We’ve enjoyed some great moments in these four years. I am very proud of everything we have achieved together. Today I say goodbye, but I will always carry Barcelona in my heart. Thank you so much, fans. Once a Barça fan, always a Barça fan.” hims
Hansi Flick and Barcelona’s Transformed Season
The Barcelona vs Real Betis result is the capstone of a season that nobody fully anticipated before it began. Hansi Flick arrived from Germany having not managed club football for several years. He inherited a squad that had underperformed under successive managers and was expected to compete but not necessarily dominate. What followed was La Liga’s first-ever perfect home record, a second consecutive title, and the platform to build something that could challenge for everything next season with a younger core around players like Lamine Yamal, Pedri, and Gavi.
The Lewandowski departure creates a vacancy that the club will need to address in the transfer window. At 37, his physical decline was inevitable, but his effectiveness throughout this campaign — particularly in the first half of the season — showed that the replacement cannot simply be a younger body. It needs to be a footballer of comparable finishing quality.
Antoine Griezmann’s Emotional Atletico Madrid Goodbye
Across Madrid, Sunday’s final home match of the season for Atletico Madrid carried its own farewell narrative.
Antoine Griezmann also said goodbye to Atletico Madrid’s fans at the Metropolitano stadium before he moves to the United States to play in Major League Soccer. Atletico beat Girona 1-0. Griezmann is Atletico’s all-time leading scorer. The French forward apologized again to fans on Sunday for having left Atletico to play for rival Barcelona. “I didn’t realize how much I loved you here. I was very young. I made a mistake, I reconsidered, and we did everything we could to come back and enjoy it again,” he said. hims
Atletico coach Diego Simeone praised the 35-year-old: “Griezmann is possibly the best one to have ever played here. He’s an extraordinary guy, a genius. He’s the most game-changing player that we’ve coached here.” hims
Simeone’s statement — “possibly the best one to have ever played here” — is made in the context of a club whose history includes Diego Forlan, Radamel Falcao, and Fernando Torres. It is not a casual compliment. It is the assessment of a manager who has seen everything and coached everyone at that club.
Sevilla Survives Relegation — Mbappé Starts for Real Madrid
The other major subplot from Sunday’s La Liga action came from Seville, where the relegation story and the Mbappé story intersected in unexpected ways.
Sevilla avoided relegation despite a 1-0 loss to Real Madrid at home. Vinícius Júnior scored for Madrid, which had already sealed second place. Kylian Mbappé started for Madrid three days after saying coach Álvaro Arbeloa had made him the team’s fourth-choice striker. He came off the bench in the win at Oviedo on Thursday in what was his return from an injury layoff. hims
Mbappé starting — three days after publicly stating he had been designated the team’s fourth-choice striker by Arbeloa — is the kind of internal Real Madrid dysfunction that generates its own news cycle. Whether Arbeloa’s selection choice reflects tactical philosophy, squad management, or a fractured relationship with the French superstar will be one of the defining questions of Real Madrid’s off-season planning.
It was a tight relegation fight coming into Sunday’s matches and Sevilla secured its salvation thanks to other results. Five teams will enter next weekend’s final round looking to avoid the drop: Levante, Osasuna, Elche, Girona and Mallorca. Inside the relegation zone are 17th-place Girona (40 points), second-to-last Mallorca (39) and Oviedo (29). hims
Broader Implications: What Barcelona’s Perfect Home Record Means for La Liga History
The Barcelona vs Real Betis 3-1 result will be remembered for the Lewandowski farewell, but its place in La Liga history rests on the 19/19 home record. Every major European league has produced dominant teams. Some have gone unbeaten across entire seasons. But winning every single home match — in a competition as competitive as La Liga — had never been done before. Hansi Flick has built something in one season that all of his predecessors across 90-plus years of La Liga history were unable to achieve. Whatever happens next season, that record is permanent. For more on the biggest stories in football and sport, visit The Tech Marketer.
Latest Updates
Barcelona vs Real Betis, La Liga Jornada 37, is complete. Here is where to follow the full coverage:
- ESPN has the full match highlights of Barcelona vs Real Betis including Raphinha’s free kick, the second Raphinha goal, Cancelo’s strike, and the Lewandowski farewell scenes at the Spotify Camp Nou. Read more at ESPN
- Yahoo Sports via Football España has the match report on Raphinha’s free kick opener for Barcelona against Real Betis and the context of the historic 19/19 home record Barcelona was chasing on Sunday. Read more at Yahoo Sports
- Click2Houston via the Associated Press has the full AP match report covering Lewandowski’s farewell, Griezmann’s goodbye to Atletico, Sevilla’s relegation survival, the Mbappé fourth-choice striker development, and the full La Liga relegation table heading into the final round. Read more at Click2Houston
FAQ: Barcelona vs Real Betis
1. What was the score of Barcelona vs Real Betis on Jornada 37? Barcelona defeated Real Betis 3-1 at the Spotify Camp Nou on Sunday, May 17, 2026, completing a perfect 19-win, 19-game home record in La Liga — the first time any team in La Liga history has won every home match in a single season.
2. Who scored for Barcelona against Real Betis? Raphinha scored twice, including the opening free kick in the 28th minute. João Cancelo added Barcelona’s third goal. Raphinha’s free kick opener caught Betis goalkeeper Álvaro Vallés off guard and set the tone for the historic home record celebration.
3. Why was the Barcelona vs Real Betis match Robert Lewandowski’s farewell? Barcelona announced on Saturday, May 16, that 37-year-old Robert Lewandowski would be leaving the club after four seasons. He played his last home match at Camp Nou against Real Betis and was thrown into the air by his teammates after the final whistle, receiving a guard of honor as he walked to the locker room. He scored 119 goals in 192 appearances for Barcelona.
4. What happened to Sevilla in the relegation battle on Jornada 37? Sevilla lost 1-0 to Real Madrid at home — Vinícius Júnior scored the only goal — but survived relegation thanks to other results around them. Five teams remain in the relegation battle heading into the final round of Jornada 38: Levante, Osasuna, Elche, Girona, and Mallorca.
5. Who is Antoine Griezmann and why did he say goodbye to Atletico Madrid? Antoine Griezmann, Atletico Madrid’s all-time leading scorer, played his final home match for the club on Sunday before departing to Major League Soccer in the United States. He apologized to fans for his previous move to rival Barcelona, saying he made a mistake and was grateful to have returned. Coach Diego Simeone called him “possibly the best one to have ever played here.”
Sources and References
- ESPN: Barcelona Sends Robert Lewandowski Off in Style at Home
- Yahoo Sports / Football España: VIDEO: Raphinha Sets Barcelona on Their Way to La Liga Record With Free-Kick Goal
- Click2Houston / Associated Press: Barcelona Wins in Lewandowski’s Farewell; Sevilla Avoids Relegation Despite Loss to Real Madrid
