The capital of Spain is home to three top basketball league teams. Also, it welcomes big names in the field of international tennis and athletics, who come to compete in the Mutua Madrid Open tennis tournament and the San Silvestre Vallecana footrace.

Basketball

In Madrid, basketball is almost as popular as football. Real Madrid, Estudiantes and Fuenlabrada, a town about 15 kilometres from the centre of the capital, are all clubs that play in the top-level men’s pro basketball league ACB. The WiZink Center is the home arena of Real Madrid and Estudiantes, and it hosts ACB and Euroleague games. 

Having hosted historic games, this year it was one of the venues of the final phase of the FIBA Basketball World Cup 2014.

Tennis

Since 2002, Caja Mágica, an impressive tennis centre designed by French architect Dominique Perrault, has staged one of the world’s leading tennis competitions: the Mutua Madrid Open. Top players, both men and women, come to Madrid in May to compete in this ATP World Tour Masters 1000 tournament, so it’s a good chance to see the big names in action.

Athletics

Madrileños love not only football but athletics too. Hundreds of cheering spectators take to the streets every year to watch the Madrid Marathon and Half Marathon.

The Half Marathon is one of the road running events held in Europe that attract the highest number of athletes. The Zurich Rock ‘n’ Roll Running Series Madrid is part of this popular world circuit of 'running' - Rock & Roll Marathon Series - in which live music is integrated into sports activity and accompanies along different points of the event.

Madrid has an extensive calendar of popular races throughout the year, among which the traditional San Silvestre Vallecana on 31 December stands out, combining quality and mass participation, as well as the Indoor Athletics Meeting which is held in February, an event that is part of the IAAF World Indoor Tour; the Meeting Madrid, which is held in July and brings together the best national and international athletes. Every year the Women’s Race takes place, the biggest festival of women's sport in Madrid which contributes to raising funds for the fight against breast cancer.  

Cycling

A city with a deeply rooted cycling tradition, Madrid has played witness to the development of the brilliant careers of Alberto Contador and Carlos Sastre, among other pro elite riders. What’s more, the final stage of the Vuelta Ciclista a España normally finishes in Paseo de la Castellana.

Madrid also independently hosts Women’s La Vuelta the male version. This race has consolidated itself as one of the most important races on the female World Tour calendar.

Love of cycling extends to the man on the street and more and more kilometres of cycle ways  are being built. Furthermore, the city has a  ‘green belt’, with a perimeter of around sixty-four kilometres, which surrounds the metropolitan area and many options to rent a bicycle.   

Equestrian sports

The Zarzuela Hippodrome represents a traditional leisure and catering offer in Madrid, combining enjoyment with the hippodrome’s open air spaces, (one of the most emblematic venues in the capital – an architectural milestone of rationalism in Madrid). You can enjoy all the thrill of races that take place almost all year round, with around 41 horse riding events and over 230 races a year. In addition, with the arrival of the summer season, races take place in the evening.

Club de Campo too has a premier equestrian centre, which organises the renowned Madrid International Show Jumping Competition - Longines Global Champions Tour, included in the Global Champions Tour. This is the world’s most important show jumping event, bringing together the best riders and delivering an incredibly high money prize. Club de Campo Villa de Madrid also hosts the annual Longines EEF Series Madrid, better known as the Nations Cup.

Each year, the Feria de Madrid also hosts an edition of the Madrid Horse Week, the most important equestrian event held in Spain evento and which seeks to bring the general public closer to the world of horses.  

Image

Motor racing

Another international event drawing lots of visitors to Madrid year after year is the Spanish Truck GP, awarding points for the European Truck Racing Championship. It takes place at the Jarama race track in San Sebastián de los Reyes, on the outskirts of Madrid, on a single weekend in September or October.

Golf

The city of Madrid hosts one of the most popular and traditional tournaments in Europe, the Spanish Open Golf. This tournament is part of the European Tour and can be seen at the Club de Campo Villa de Madrid, a historic course for the world of golf, where names such as Jack Nicklaus, Colin Montgomerie or Severiano Ballesteros have played.

Others 

Among the traditional events in Madrid's sporting calendar is also the Villa de Madrid International Badminton Tournament, which takes place in June; and throughout the month of September, the Challenge Madrid Long Distance Triathlon is held, which covers large areas of the Community of Madrid, and the Triathlon World Cup, considered one of the toughest on the international circuit. At the end of the year you can also see the World Padel Tour, considered the professional padel circuit of reference at world level, which brings together the best players in the ranking.

In February, Madrid hosts the International Trampoline Jumping Tournament (Fina Diving Grand Prix) which brings together the best jumpers in the world. The city is also the venue for the Karate Premier League, a competition included in the Sports Calendar of the World Karate Federation (WKF); and the "Villa de Madrid" Individual and Team Senior Men's Sabre World Cup Tournament where the most important sportsmen and women in the fencing discipline meet, both individually and in teams.

The city of Madrid usually hosts matches between the Spanish National Rugby Side, known popularly as the Lions, which plays its matches at the Complutense University Central Stadium. New trends, such as skateboarding, BMX and Parkour must not be forgotten. They are all categories that can be enjoyed at the Madrid Urban Sports event, which is held in autumn. Each year, the city also hosts the Madrid CrossFit Challenger Series, an event that brings together more than 300 athletes to compete in five different categories.