Did the Mbappé experiment fail? Real Madrid’s trophy drought stretches to 2 years

It’s been almost two years since Kylian Mbappé left Paris Saint-Germain to join Real Madrid, partly to try to win the Champions League. The captain of France and the biggest club in the Champions League are still waiting for that victory. Meanwhile, PSG won the Champions League trophy right after his departure and are back in the semi-finals this season. Mbappé’s last hopes of winning his first European title ended with Madrid’s elimination by Bayern Munich in the quarter-finals on Wednesday. Madrid are on the verge of a second consecutive season without a major trophy since the addition of Mbappé in one of the most high-profile signings of all time. The club’s only triumphs with Mbappé have come in the UEFA Super Cup and Intercontinental Cup, both in 2024. Madrid have not won a title in Spain since the striker’s arrival. The only remaining chance of winning a trophy this season is in La Liga, but Madrid are nine points behind leaders Barcelona with seven games remaining. Mbappé has received some criticism from fans despite his goals, and the pressure on him is only likely to increase after yet another failure in the Champions League. Here’s a look at how Madrid and Mbappé fared during this rare trophyless run: Champions League In his first attempt to win the Champions League with Madrid in 2024-25, Mbappé, accustomed to his new team, scored seven goals, six fewer than the top scorers. Then reigning champion, Madrid was eliminated by Arsenal in the quarter-finals. This season, the much more stable Mbappé exited the quarter-finals again, but as top scorer with 15, two short of Cristiano Ronaldo’s record of 17 in a single season. Mbappé scored in Wednesday’s 4-3 loss to Bayern Munich. Spanish Championship On his league debut in 2024-25, Mbappé was the league’s top scorer with 31, four more than Barcelona’s Robert Lewandowski, his closest competitor. But Madrid finished four points behind the Catalan club in the standings. Mbappé is again this season the top scorer in the championship with 23, two more than Vedad Muriqi of Mallorca. Madrid kept pace with Barcelona but failed to win its last matches and lost ground. Copa del Rey Last year, Madrid beat Real Sociedad in the semi-final but lost to Barcelona 3-2 in the final, where Mbappé scored. This season, Madrid were shocked by second division Albacete in the round of 16, with the elimination coming just after the team replaced coach Xabi Alonso with Álvaro Arbeloa. Spanish Super Cup Mbappé scored in the 2025 final but Madrid were beaten 5-2 by Barcelona. The Catalan rival once again beat Mbappé’s Madrid (3-2) in the final this season. Associated Press reporting.