Wolves under-21s will take on Real Madrid at Molineux in their opening fixture of the 2025/26 Premier League International Cup.
It will be the first time James Collins’ side have gone head-to-head with the Spanish giants, with the team’s facing off in the Black Country on Wednesday 10th September, 7pm kick-off.
The under-21s are competing in Europe for the fourth consecutive season and their group fixtures also see Wolves take on RB Leipzig for the first time later in September (Monday 29th) at SEAH Stadium in Telford.
Wolves will also renew acquaintances with 2022/23 champions PSV Eindhoven on Tuesday 28th October at Aggborough, having last faced the Dutch side on their way to the final in 2023/24, where they were denied successive titles by Crystal Palace.
The under-21s will round out their group fixtures at Aggborough on Thursday 8th January 2026 against Monaco, who Wolves also faced at the same stage last season.
Collins said: “The whole draw of the International Cup is incredible. PSV Eindhoven are probably the best team who’ve been in the competition from a youth development point of view during the last three or four years and they’ve done brilliantly.
“Monaco are always excellent, Leipzig are an up-and-coming club who are getting better year-on-year, and then Real Madrid is the pinnacle of football.
“We’ve got an incredible draw and it’s a competition to be really excited about to play under at Molineux early in the season and it’s a great challenge for our players to see how they can perform.”
Wolves have played several of their Premier League International Cup fixtures at Molineux in past seasons, taking on the likes of Paris Saint-Germain, Monaco, Porto and Ajax at the club’s main stadium.
But Collins admitted the prospect of inviting Real Madrid, one of the biggest teams in the history of football, to Molineux has given his young players some added excitement ahead of what he hopes will be a successful season.
“There’s a definite excitement when we play against the big clubs, especially foreign clubs, as we don’t get to play a lot in Europe, so it always brings an added excitement and an added enjoyment.
“The boys were especially buzzing when they heard we had Real Madrid because they’re a team we’ve never played in my time here, and it’s also such a big club, an iconic football club, but all of the games are going to be great experiences for boys to develop and learn from.
“Molineux games are brilliant for us. I remember when we were promoted out the PL2 second division a few years ago, we played about seven or eight games at Molineux that season and it was a great experience for players like Chem Campbell, Luke Cundle, Joe Hodge and Hugo Bueno, and I think it really brought them on.
“I believe any games we can get at Molineux will help develop the players a little bit more than at our normal venues, so it would be wonderful to have the support of the Wolves fans there as we want to put the pressure on the boys in that way, and it’ll be good to see what comes out of it.”
Wolves under-21s’ 2025/26 Premier League International Cup match dates:
- Wednesday 10th September | Real Madrid, 7pm | Molineux
- Monday 29th September | RB Leipzig, 7pm | SEAH Stadium
- Tuesday 28th October | PSV Eindhoven, 7pm | Aggborough
- Thursday 8th January | AS Monaco, 7pm | Aggborough
Further information, including ticket prices and sale dates, for the Molineux match against Real Madrid will be confirmed in due course.
Click here for a full list of the under-21s’ 2025/26 fixtures.
