El Clásico: Barcelona vs Real Madrid to air on free TV in the US and target record ratings

The Clásico between Barcelona and Real Madrid crosses borders, and the upcoming edition on Sunday, October 25 will do so in a way never seen before in the United States. ESPN, which holds LaLiga's US broadcast rights through the 2028-29 season, will share the signal with ABC, its free-to-air broadcast network. That means the match between the Catalan and Madrid giants will be available without a subscription across the entire country, a move set to send viewership figures soaring.

• The Barcelona-Real Madrid match on October 25 will air on free television in the US via ABC.
• ESPN will continue to offer the game on its paid platform in English and Spanish.
• Kickoff is at 21:00 in Spain, 16:00 on the East Coast and 13:00 on the West Coast.
• The return Clásico will be played at the Bernabéu on May 8 or 9 at 16:15 Spanish time.
• The free-to-air broadcast aims to strengthen LaLiga's footprint on traditional US television.

Why ABC will broadcast Barcelona vs Real Madrid on free TV

The decision by ESPN and ABC is part of a push to increase LaLiga's visibility on traditional American television networks. ABC is a historic channel founded in 1948, the third to broadcast in the country after NBC and CBS, and has been owned by The Walt Disney Company since 1996, the same group that owns ESPN. This internal partnership allows a match with the international pull of the Clásico to reach millions of homes without a pay-TV contract.

The showdown between Lamine Yamal and Kylian Mbappé will feature a one-hour pre-match show and coverage highlighting the progress of the Spotify Camp Nou renovation.

What time does the Clásico kick off in the United States

The match starts at 21:00 Spanish peninsular time. In the United States, the ball will get rolling at 16:00 on the East Coast and 13:00 on the West Coast. The time difference will be an unusual five hours with the East Coast and eight with the West Coast, as Spain will have switched to winter time the previous night, while the United States will not make the change until November 1.

The best possible time slot for the American audience

For more than a decade, the first Clásico of the LaLiga season has been the one that fits best into the American viewing window. The Sunday fixture is played in Spanish prime time, which places it in a highly favorable afternoon slot for television consumption in the United States. The second meeting, by contrast, is scheduled for early afternoon in the Iberian Peninsula to cater to the Asian market, leaving US viewers with a match in the early morning or pre-dawn hours.

When and where the return Clásico will be played

Barcelona and Real Madrid will meet again on matchday 35 of LaLiga, on Saturday May 8 or Sunday May 9, at the Santiago Bernabéu. That fixture is set for 16:15 Spanish time and will be broadcast by Movistar LaLiga. It falls in the so-called Asian slot: it will air at 22:15 in China and 23:15 in Japan. In the United States, fans will need to wake up early or stay up late, with kickoff at 10:15 on the East Coast and 07:15 on the West Coast.

How to watch the October 25 Clásico in the United States

American viewers will have two options to follow the match. The headline change is ABC, which will offer the game on free-to-air television across the country. Subscribers can also watch via ESPN's platform, in both English and Spanish. This dual approach maximizes the potential audience and turns the Clásico into one of the sporting events of the year on American television.