Barcelona continue their push for the La Liga title as they host red-hot Real Betis in league play on Saturday.
This match presents a golden opportunity for Barcelona to gain ground, as Real Madrid dropped points earlier in the day with a stunning last-gasp defeat to Valencia.
A win here would leave Barcelona a full six points clear at the top of the table,
It presents a challenge, however, as Real Betis are in exceptional form, having won six straight games to push all the way up to sixth in the league standings.
The Sporting News is following the Barcelona vs. Real Betis match live, providing score updates, commentary.
Latest live updates | Team news and lineups | How to watch where you are
Barcelona vs. Real Betis score
| Score (1H) | Goal scorers | |
| Barcelona | 1 | Gavi (8') |
| Real Betis | 0 | – |
Location: Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium (Barcelona, Spain)
Referee: Jesus Gil Manzano
Keep track of every game and every goal via SN's live Premier League scoreboard
Starting lineups:
Barcelona (4-4-2, right to left): 25. Szczesny (GK) — 25. Kounde, 4. Araujo, 2. Cubarsi, 3. Balde — 19. Lamine Yamal, 21. de Jong, 8. Pedri, 6. Gavi— 7. F. Torres, 9. Lewandowski.
Real Betis (4-3-3, right to left): 13. Adrian (GK) — 24. Ruibal, 6. Natan, 5. Bartra, 15. Perraud — 4. Johnny, 20. Lo Celso, 16. Altimira — 7. Antony, 19. J. Hernandez, 18. Fornals.
📲 Follow The Sporting News on WhatsApp
Barcelona vs. Real Betis live updates, highlights from La Liga match
14th min: An early yellow card is shown to Natan who clobbers Lamine Yamal to stop a counter-attack, meaning the Real Betis defender will have to be careful the rest of the way. His booking comes after Johnny Cardoso tried to take the youngster down from behind but his slide whiffed, leaving his teammate with few options.
8th min: GOAL! BARCELONA! A beautiful far-post finish from Gavi caps off a beautiful Barcelona move! Ferran Torres picks up the assist on a gorgeous vertical ball that feeds the midfielder in shaded to the right, and he slots the ball past Adrian across the face of goal and into the net!
Gavi wheels away but puts his hands up in a refusal to celebrate against his boyhood club.
Watch in USA:
GAVI OPENS THE SCORING VS. HIS BOYHOOD CLUB REAL BETIS 🔥 pic.twitter.com/28A45J3ezl
— ESPN FC (@ESPNFC) April 5, 2025
6th min: Chance, Barcelona! Both sides have shown strong attacking intent, but it's the hosts who create the first chance as Pedri fires a shot from just outside the top-right corner of the penalty area that forces a big save out of Adrian! An excellent diving stop to keep out the effort seeking the top-right corner!
Kickoff: They're under way in Catalonia! Barcelona can go six points clear at the top of the table with a win, but Real Betis can put themselves into the European conversation with an upset of their own!
Barcelona vs. Real Betis: Pre-match commentary, analysis, more
15 mins to kickoff: Hansi Flick before the match confirmed that Raphinha's continued absence from the starting lineup has not been due to injury, but rather the club being careful with his fitness. Given the Champions League is likely to resume, it tracks that he'll likely return to the lineup for those games.
For now, Barcelona's league journey continues shortly!
🚨⚠️ Hansi Flick on Raphinha benched tonight: “No injury… He's played several matches for his country, and we want to be careful with him”. pic.twitter.com/UtsBHMJfKV
— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) April 5, 2025
30 mins to kickoff: The Real Madrid defeat to Valencia earlier today was a shocking result, as it was the first time Los Blancos had been beaten by Valencia at home in 17 years. It left Barcelona with a huge chance to go two full victories clear of anyone else at the top of the table, which would give them enormously important breathing room with a host of other competitions also to prioritise.
45 mins to kickoff: The absence of Isco from the Real Betis side will harm their buildup considerably. He ranks in the 98th percentile for shot-creating actions amongst European attacking midfielders, largely thanks to his insanely high rate of progressive passes, averaging 8.74 per 90 minutes, which also ranks in the 98th percentile.
1 hour to kickoff: Real Betis captain Marc Bartra starts for the 25th time this season, which triggers an automatic one-year extension to his contract. The 34-year-old was a Barcelona youth product once upon a time and made 103 appearances for the senior side before leaving for Borussia Dortmund, Trabzonspor, and eventually Real Betis.
1 hour 15 mins to kick: Lineups are in! For Barcelona, there are a number of surprises.
Most notably, Hansi Flick has decided to start both Robert Lewandowski and Ferran Torres together, despite one coming off the bench to replace the other for much of the season. Lamine Yamal recovers from his midweek knock to start, while Raphinha and Fermin Lopez are both surprisingly left on the bench.
1 hour 30 min to kick: Robert Lewandowski is the first player to score 25 goals in the first 28 La Liga games of a season since Lionel Messi did in the 2018/19 campaign.
He can add to his total and increase his lead in the Pichichi standings with a goal tonight.
1 hour 45 mins to kick: Incredibly, Antony has the same amount of goal contributions as Lamine Yamal since joining Real Betis — two goals and two assists. However, he hasn't contributed to a goal in four straight league appearances, following his explosive start to life in Spain.
Antony didn't have much success to savor at Manchester United, but he did score the winning goal in a home Champions League victory the last time he played against this side. He could be vital to any potential Real Betis success today.
The last time Barcelona faced Antony ⚽👀 pic.twitter.com/VSlLoamLy4
— OneFootball (@OneFootball) April 5, 2025
2 hours to kickoff: Lamine Yamal picked up a knock early in the second half of their last match, and while he's reportedly fit to start, there could be reason here for Hansi Flick to give him a rest, at least from the start of the game. It remains to be seen how heavily the boss will lean on his young star.
Barcelona vs. Real Betis kick off time
This La Liga match kicks off from the Lluis Companys Olympic Stadium on Saturday, April 5 at 9 p.m. local time in Barcelona, Spain. Here's how that time translates across some of the major territories around the globe:
| Date | Kickoff time | |
| USA/Canada | Sat, Apr. 5 | 3 p.m. ET |
| USA/Canada | Sat, Apr. 5 | 12 p.m. PT |
| UK | Sat, Apr. 5 | 8 p.m. BST |
| Australia | Sun, Apr. 6 | 2 a.m. AEST |
| India | Sat, Jun. 15 | 9:30 p.m. IST |
Barcelona vs. Real Betis lineups, team news
Lamine Yamal picked up a knock in the second leg victory against Atletico Madrid, playing 87 minutes in the match but clearly struggling through the second half after being thumped shortly after halftime. Despite that, Hansi Flick has decided he is fit enough to start.
Also picking up a muscle issue in that Copa del Rey match was Inigo Martinez, meaning Ronald Araujo gets a rare start in defence.
Surprisingly, however, Raphinha has gone back to the bench, now having started just one of the club's four matches since the international break ended. That means Gavi gets the start out wide, with Dani Olmo still out. Robert Lewandowski slots back into the striker role after coming off the bench last time out, surprisingly alongside Ferran Torres in what looks to be a 4-4-2.
Goalkeeper Marc-Andre ter Stegen is back in training, a major step in his recovery from a torn ACL, but reports continue to state that Barcelona coach Hansi Flick has already made up his mind that he will stick with Wojciech Szczesny, at least in the Champions League, as the German could only make a return late in league play.
Barcelona starting lineup (4-4-2): Szczesny (GK) — Kounde, Araujo, Cubarsi, Balde — Lamine Yamal, de Jong, Pedri, Gavi — F. Torres, Lewandowski.
Barcelona subs (11): Pena (GK), Kochen (GK), Fort, Christensen, E. Garcia, Martin, Torre, F. Lopez, Fati, Raphinha, Victor.
Real Betis are at pretty good squad health, all things considered.
Isco and Marc Roca have seemingly failed late fitness tests, meaning they each miss out. Roca has missed considerable time this season with ankle and foot injuries, while Isco was withdrawn in the 71st minute of the recent win over Sevilla and needs some time to recover.
Moroccan international Abdessamad Ezzalzouli picked up a thigh injury a few weeks ago and will need a bit more time to prove fit.
Real Betis starting lineup (4-3-3): Adrian (GK) — Ruibal, Bartra, Natan, Perraud — Johnny, Lo Celso, Altimira — Antony, J. Hernandez, Fornals.
Real Betis subs (11): Vieites (GK), Fernandes (GK), Llorente, Bellerin, R. Rodriguez, Sabaly, Flores, Carvalho, Bakambu, Avila, J. Rodriguez.
Barcelona vs. Real Betis live stream, TV channel
Here is how to watch the match in some of the world's major regions:
| Date | Time | TV channel | Streaming | |
| USA | Sat, Apr. 5 | 3 p.m. ET 12 p.m. PT | ESPN Deportes | Fubo USA, ESPN+ |
| Canada | Sat, Apr. 5 | 3 p.m. ET / 12 p.m. PT | — | TSN+ |
| UK | Sat, Apr. 5 | 8 p.m. BST | — | LaLigaTV, Premier Player |
| Australia | Sun, Apr. 6 | 6 a.m. AEST | beIN Sports 2 | beIN Sports Connect |
| India | Sun, Apr. 6 | 12:30 a.m. IST | — | GXR World |
If you purchase a product or register for an account through one of the links on our site, we may receive compensation. Learn more >