Xabi Alonso joined Real Madrid last summer, and now he’s already gone. The man who led Leverkusen to the championship has been fired.

Following the defeat in the Spanish Super Cup, Xabi Alonso has been fired as coach of Real Madrid. Spain’s most successful soccer club announced on Monday that the separation took place “by mutual agreement.” Alonso (44) had taken over Real at the start of the season, succeeding Carlo Ancelotti. In Germany, he had won the double with Bayer Leverkusen in the 2023–2024 season.

In Spain’s La Liga, Real is in second place, three points behind FC Barcelona. On Sunday, Madrid lost the Supercopa final against its archrival (2–3) in Saudi Arabia. Former defender Álvaro Arbeloa will now take over.

Alonso had succeeded Carlo Ancelotti just this past summer, joining Real Madrid as one of the most sought-after coaches in the world. He had signed a contract with Real Madrid that ran through the end of June 2028, effective June 1, 2025. Alonso had already announced that he would be leaving Leverkusen during the final stages of the 2024–25 season. The Spaniard had played for Real from 2009 to 2014, winning the Champions League and the Spanish league title.

In a statement at the time, Real Madrid described Alonso as “one of the greatest legends of Real Madrid and world soccer.” They said he was returning “to Real Madrid as one of the best coaches in the world.”

Not much of that remains now. With an impressive run from the bottom of the table to the championship in less than two years, Xabi Alonso has made a name for himself at Bayer Leverkusen. From an unknown coach to an undefeated champion and DFB Cup winner: By the summer of 2024, Alonso was practically in a position to pick and choose his club.

In the summer of 2025, he did just that and joined Real Madrid. In 28 games there, Alonso recorded 20 wins, three draws, and five losses. However, there were repeated rumors of discord in the locker room, with Vinicius Junior alone regularly making headlines. So now Alonso has had to leave.