FC Barcelona (CHAMPIONS, 91pts) vs Real Betis Balompié (5th, 57pts)
Competition/Round: 2025-26 La Liga, Matchday 37
Barcelona Outs & Doubts: Lamine Yamal, Frenkie de Jong (out), Marcus Rashford (doubt)
Real Betis Outs & Doubts: Diego Llorente, Marc Bartra, Sergi Altimira, Cucho Hernández, Aitor Ruibal, Ángel Ortiz (out)
Barcelona Form Guide: WWWWL
Real Betis Form Guide: WDWDW
Date/Time: Sunday, May 17, 2026, 9.15pm CET/WAT (Barcelona), 8.15pm BST/WAT (UK & Nigeria), 3.15pm ET, 12.15pm PT (USA), 12.45am IST (India, Monday)
Venue: Camp Nou, Barcelona, Catalonia, Spain
Referee: Guillermo Cuadra Fernández
VAR: Iván Caparrós Hernández
How to watch on TV: ESPN Deportes (USA), Premier Sports 1 (UK), SuperSport (Nigeria), Movistar (Spain), others
How to watch online: ESPN+ (USA), Premier Sports Player (UK), FanCode (India), Movistar+ (Spain), others
Following a defeat to Alavés in midweek, the back-to-back champions of La Liga return to action for their final home game of the season as Barcelona welcome Real Betis to the Greatest Stadium on Earth on Sunday Night Fútbol.
This is the second of three dead rubbers for Barça as they finish another successful season, and unlike the game against Alavés when the Basques were fighting for their lives, this one means nothing to both teams as they’ve already reached their goals: Barça are champions while Betis have clinched a spot in the Champions League for the first time in 20 years, and are locked into fifth place coming into the last two games.
Both sides will be able to play free without any pressure, which almost guarantees another spectacle between two sides who always put on a show when they get together. Barça and Betis like to play, attack and score, and their games always have tons of goals and entertainment.
The three points are meaningless for Barça’s position in the table, but they do mean a whole lot for the Blaugrana as they pursue history: with a victory on Sunday the Catalans will become the first team in 40 years and the first ever in a 20-team La Liga season to go the entire campaign without dropping a single point at home. Not even the greatest Barça sides of this century have achieved such a feat, and Hansi Flick made it clear in his pre-match press conference that he wants a perfect home record.
There is also a second motivating factor to a Barça win: this will be Robert Lewandowski’s last home game for Barça after he announced his departure this weekend, and the Pole will start and likely captain the side in his farewell match. Lewy needed just four years to become a club legend and will receive a deserved ovation from the Camp Nou crowd whenever he’s substituted in the second half, and we’re all hoping he finds the net one last time before he leaves Barça for good.
It’s always fun to watch Barça and Betis get together, and this one is completely stress-free and is all about two things: Barça’s pursuit of home perfection and Lewy’s send-off. We can all sit back, relax, and enjoy what will undoubtedly be a very fun two hours in the Catalan capital.
Let’s dance.
POSSIBLE LINEUPS
Barcelona (4-2-3-1): Joan; Eric, Cubarsí, Martín, Cancelo; Gavi, Pedri; Roony, Fermín, Raphinha; Lewandowski
Real Betis (4-2-3-1): López; Bellerín, Gómez, Natan, Firpo; Fornals, Roca; Antony, Lo Celso, Ez Abde; Bakambu
PREDICTION
Barça will be motivated to make La Liga history and to give their legendary striker a victorious farewell at home, so I’m expecting a good attacking performance, a high-scoring affair and one final Robert Lewandowski goal. Or maybe two. Or who knows, maybe a hat-trick: 4-2 Barça.
