With Wolves under-21s set to host Real Madrid under the Molineux lights this evening, club historian Peter Crump has looked back at famous previous meetings of the two historic clubs.
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Our under-21 side will return to the Premier League International Cup this season, in a competition which adds to a very diverse range of fixtures for our senior academy side.
We have fixtures once again in the EFL Trophy, a competition fondly remembered in Wolverhampton due to our exploits in 1988. We will also be visiting some new venues again in the National League Cup such as Wealdstone, Forest Green, Braintree Town & Boreham Wood. One or two of these games may well have taken place by the time you have read this.
To add to this, an exciting fixture programme in the Premier League International competition was announced in August and Wolves will face some names we have gone up against in the past, both at this level and at first-team level too, as RB Leipzig, Monaco, PSV Eindhoven and Real Madrid await.
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On Wednesday 10th September 2025, Wolves will play their first game in the competition against Real Madrid. This game will not be taking place at Aggborough, the usual home of our under-21 side - this one will be at Molineux.
Wolves have faced Real Madrid before, albeit at senior level, however we have to go back to 1957.
On Thursday 17th October 1957, Real Madrid visited Molineux for one of our famous floodlit friendlies. It was the 14th game in the so-called series and it was an extremely tough assignment for Wolves too.
At that point in time, Real Madrid were double European Champions after they had won the first two editions of the European Cup, beating French side Reims in the inaugural final of 1956 and Fiorentina in 1957. In the second of these triumphs, Real Madrid had beaten the Busby Babes on the way to the final. Real beat Manchester United 5-3 on aggregate at the semi-final stage, with a team which was littered with amazing players, such as Alfredo Di Stefano and may more.
Real Madrid arrived at Molineux on 17th October as favourites. Even more so as Wolves were missing their leader on the pitch, Billy Wright, who was away on international duty. Two days later, Wright captained England against Wales at Ninian Park in a 4-0 win. The Wolves skipper was continuing to break the record at that time as the most capped player in world football, having won his 86th cap that evening in Cardiff and was well on his way to his 105 overall.
Back to Wolves, and Stan Cullis' men were by now on their second set of floodlights. Our original lights that had been in place since the summer of 1953 had been taken down and sold to Blackpool FC, who never ended up putting them up as the floodlit league they were entering did not go ahead. Blackpool then sold them to Grimsby Town and those lights were in place at Blundell Park until as recently as 2019. Our new lights of 1957 were much taller than their predecessors.
On the famous night against Real Madrid, it was the visitors from Spain who took the lead in the 15th minute through Marsal. They were nearly two up when Di Stefano almost scored at the end of the first half.
During the second half, Peter Broadbent in the 52nd minute and Jimmy Murray in 60th minute put Wolves into a 2-1 lead, but the lead however lasted only 12 minutes as Marsal pulled one back for Real. It was however to be Wolves' night, as in the 80th, minute Dennis Wilshaw scored the decisive goal of the game to win the contest for the Old Gold.
The Wolves team who famously played Real Madrid in front of 55,169 supporters were Malcolm Finlayson, Eddie Stuart (captain), Gerry Harris, Eddie Clamp, George Showell, Ron Flowers, Norman Deeley, Peter Broadbent, Jimmy Murray, Dennis Wilshaw and Jimmy Mullen.
They were all heroes, but a special mention must also go to George Showell, who was magnificent. Showell was under immense pressure playing in place of Billy Wright and facing De Stefano too. It was hardly an easy task for Showell. The Bilston born defender did the Wolves shirt proud - as did the other 10 players that evening.
We do have a picture in our collection of Eddie Stuart who was the skipper for the famous night at Molineux presenting a bouquet of flowers to Real Madrid skipper Jose Maria Zarraga.
Just under two months later, Wolves and Real Madrid met again, but this time it was Real Madrid who played hosts in a friendly on Wednesday 11th December 1957, with the game ending in a 2-2 draw.
Bobby Mason and Jimmy Mullen scored for Wolves that evening at the Bernabeu, although some sources say goal number two was an own goal. But this was also a hugely impressive result and was spoke about in the matchday programmes of the 1957/58 season.
To put the result into even more context, Real Madrid on 17th February 1957 beat Deportivo La Coruna 1-0 at the Bernabeu. They would go on a 121-game unbeaten run at home. Although Wolves didn’t beat Madrid on their own patch, they did not beat us either!
The Wolves team which faced Real Madrid at the Bernabeu in front of a crowd of approximately 60,000 were Malcolm Finlayson, Eddie Stuart, Gerry Harris, Eddie Clamp, Billy Wright (captain), Ron Flowers, Norman Deeley, Peter Broadbent, Jimmy Murray, Bobby Mason, Jimmy Mullen. A substitute was also allowed in this game and George Showell came on for Eddie Clamp. Showell more than deserved some time out on the Bernabeu pitch after his tremendous display in the first game.
To rubber stamp how great these achievements were, Real Madrid would go on to win another three European Cups in a row, which meant they would win the first five European Cups. Not longer after we had played Madrid, they also signed Ference Puskas who Wolves and Billy Wright were all so familiar with.
Even during the 1960s, although the dominance in the European Cup declined, the Spaniards still got to three finals, losing two and winning another in 1966. Real Madrid are the most successful side ever in the European Cup/Champions Leagues with 15 titles, while they have also been runners-up on three occasions. Their closest rival is AC Milan with seven wins and four runners-up spots.
We talked a lot last season as a football club about the achievement of beating Honved in arguably our most famous floodlit night of all and the ramifications that had on European Club football. If we were to be honest, these two achievements against Real Madrid could be put in the same bracket for sure.
The truth is Real Madrid have never beaten Wolves, however we say this with a slight tinge of humour as we haven’t met them since December 1957, but no matter what the result is on 10th September 2025, this record remains intact at first team level. We do however await our next meeting with our friends from Madrid.
Please, come along to Molineux and support our under-21s on Wednesday, as it might be another 68 years before we see Real Madrid in the Black Country again!
Tickets for Wolves under-21s vs Real Madrid at Molineux are available here.
We should all be proud of our heroes from 1957/58. Let’s not forget we went onto become Champions of England for the second time in our history that season before a back-to-back title would follow in 1958/59.
The 1957/58 season, however, is arguably the most successful season in the club’s history. On top of being Champions of England, our reserves won the Central League, Wolves A won the Birmingham & District League, Wolves B won the Worcestershire Combination, and we also won the FA Youth Cup in an amazing two-legged final against Chelsea. This is the only time Wolves have ever won the FA Youth Cup, although we have lost four times in the final.
The only league title that evaded our grasp was the Northern Intermediate League where our nursery club, Wath Wanderers, were competing in. Other than this every other Wolves team won their respective division that season.
Wolves are also to be re-acquainted with Dutch side PSV Eindhoven this year too, although our under-21s did face PSV in the same tournament in October 2023.
That evening, Wolves earnt an impressive win against then then-competition holders, on an evening which saw Enzo Gonzales make his first ever appearance at Molineux. Wolves went on to win 2-1 with goals from Kam Kandola and Nathan Fraser.
But back in the 1980/81 season, Wolves also faced PSV in the UEFA Cup. This was Wolves' reward for beating Nottingham Forest in the 1980 League Cup final.
Wolves firstly travelled to Eindhoven for the first leg on Wednesday 17th September 1980, however, we lost 3-1 in the Netherlands that evening, with Andy Gray getting the Wolves goal. We know the Wolves players visited the famous Phillips factory on this this trip and there were also some other great news from this game and it came from the behaviour of our supporters.
Trouble at football games and hooliganism was big in the 1970s and 1980s, and this was often seen when English clubs and the national team travelled to Europe. On this trip approximately to the Netherlands, about 1,000 Wolves supporters made the trip and according to reports, there was not one single arrest, and not only this, but Wolves supporters were praised for their conduct by PSV officials, coach companies, sea authorities and hoteliers too.
The wonderful Roy Davies collection here at Wolves Museum has a picture of the Wolves supporters in Eindhoven at the Phillips Stadion. We also have a ticket in our collection from the trip to the game.
The return leg took place on Wednesday 1st October 1980 and Wolves won 1-0 with a goal from Mel Eves. This goal would be Wolves' final European goal for 39 years. Our next European goal would not arrive until 25th July 2019 against Crusaders of Northern Ireland - it would scored by the late, great Diogo Jota.
Wolves had some bad luck in the home game against PSV in 1980. There was a floodlight failure in the second half for 25 minutes and at the time the lights went out, Wolves were gaining some momentum and looking good for a turnaround.
Sadly, it was not meant to be and Wolves departed the UEFA Cup at the first round stage, 3-2 on aggregate.
