Played in Jeddah, the contest saw Madrid strike almost immediately, with Fede Valverde opening the scoring after just two minutes.
The midfielder curled a free-kick past Jan Oblak for his first goal of the season, with Alexander Sorloth part of the Atletico wall that failed to make the block.
Rodrygo doubled the advantage in the 55th minute, maintaining his recent scoring run with a third goal in five matches.
Atletico, managed by Diego Simeone, responded quickly. Three minutes after Rodrygo’s strike, Sorloth headed home from a Giuliano Simeone cross, with Raul Asencio involved in the defensive breakdown.
Despite sustained pressure late on, Atletico were unable to force extra time. Thibaut Courtois produced key saves from Sorloth and Julian Alvarez, while Conor Gallagher crossed for Sorloth to head off target.
Antoine Griezmann also had a late effort denied, and Marcos Llorente dragged a final chance wide.
The win was Real Madrid’s fifth in succession across all competitions and further evidence of improvement after a turbulent spell late in 2025, when Alonso had been close to dismissal following inconsistent results.
Madrid had previously beaten Barcelona in October to give coach Xabi Alonso his first Clasico victory, before suffering a subsequent slump.
Kylian Mbappe missed the match with a knee sprain, while Gonzalo Garcia started at centre-forward days after scoring a hat-trick against Real Betis. The result also offered partial revenge after Atletico’s 5-2 La Liga derby win in September.
“It was a hard-fought match. That early goal from Fede gave us that advantage and makes you change a little,” said Alonso.
“In the first half we didn’t suffer too much. There were moments for everything because it was a semi-final, but this team knows how to compete.
“It was a very intense, hard-fought match. With the 1-2 we had to change, we stabilised and suffered. This is the path to the title on Sunday and we are in the final.”
Real Madrid will face Barcelona in Sunday’s final at the King Abdullah Sports City stadium.
