BBC's final farewell: the "athletes" of 910 goals

There are bad stories and good stories, but very few cause fantasies. The Real Madrid love affair with Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema and Gareth Bale as a great partnership lasted for 5 years. After several seasons at the top of the sport, one by one they have already left the Santiago Bernabeu. In terms of numbers, there is no contest: 910 goals in 1,344 games. Or what is the same: an attack with an average of 0.68 goals in those matches in which at least one of them played.

The last one, Benzema, put the icing on the cake of an ideal tale, hardly matched by statistical records. The BBC was more than an attacking trident, it was a weapon of statistical destruction. On the day they crushed Pep Guardiola's Bayern, Guardiola said: "They are footballers, but also athletes". Over time, they became a three-headed monster and a part of Real Madrid's history. Together, they were able to score 442 goals in 5 years. BeSoccer Pro examines their figures.

The BBC laid its foundation stone on 6th July 2009, when Real Madrid exploded onto the transfer market with the arrival of Cristiano Ronaldo. After becoming a star in the Premier League, he joined the 'Merengues' in exchange for the 94 million euros Madrid paid for him. That same summer, Benzema joined the Portuguese. Lyon received 35 million in the transfer. However, the partnership that Cristiano and Benzema initially formed was only a prelude to what began four years later, in 2013, with the signing of Gareth Bale. The start of the BBC, a partnership with a registered trademark.

The BBC's stats

From 2009-10 until 2012-13, Cristiano and Benzema formed a limited partnership of their own. Before the arrival of Gareth Bale, they completed three years: 288 goals between them, 201 for the Portuguese and 87 for the Frenchman. They scored 79 in 2010-11, 92 in 2011-12 and 75 in 2012-13 before forming the BBC. Beyond the total goal tally for each of them or the aforementioned 442 goals they scored in those five seasons, it is important to note the 135 games in which the three of them got some playing time. In those 135, the BBC scored 266 goals. In other words, an average of 1.97 per game. It ensured almost two goals.

13 titles. Madrid's trophy cabinet expanded after five seasons in which Ronaldo, Benzema and Bale formed one of the most feared forwards in Europe. Golden era. Four of those 13 titles were Champions League titles, something historic. Until then, no team had ever won two in a row. Madrid won it three consecutive times. In addition, 3 European Super Cups, 3 Club World Cups, 1 Spanish Super Cup, 1 Copa del Rey and 1 La Liga.

Cristiano Ronaldo was always the great pillar of the BBC in terms of figures. In those five seasons in which the three of them played together (from 2013-14 to 2017-18), he never scored less than 40 goals a year: 51, 61, 51, 42 and 44.  In total, 249. With those numbers from the Portuguese, it was not easy for Benzema, who found it difficult to dominate in the box like in his last years at Madrid, to shine in the goalscoring aspect. Despite this, 105 goals in the BBC years: 24, 22, 28, 28, 19 and 12. And from then on, he went from strength to strength in terms of importance as a key player. The third member of the BBC and the last to arrive, Gareth Bale, was always more about moments than consistency. He scored the fewest goals (88) of the three, but was essential to several titles. 22, 17, 19, 9 and 21 goals in five seasons.

Bale, the clutch player before golf (106 goals in 258 games)

He landed in Madrid in 2013 to be the final piece of a forward line that carried a trademark of its own: the aforementioned BBC. He fitted into the scheme, but he also made a significant contribution in terms of figures, and not just in those five years. In total, Bale left with 258 appearances, 106 goals, 60 assists and 19 titles (including 5 Champions League titles). After Ronaldo's departure in 2018, he faded: 14 goals in 2018-19 and 3 in 2019-20 (injury included). On his return after his loan spell at Tottenham, he went almost unnoticed.

Clutch player. The Welshman scored five goals in matches in which Madrid were playing for a title. That idyll began in the 2013-14 Copa del Rey final, when the former Tottenham player made a blistering run for a solo goal. That same season, in the Champions League final, he scored the 2-1 in the match that won the tenth UCL title for 'Los Blancos'.

Kiev put the icing on the cake. Of Bale's five Champions League appearances, he only started the final in two: the 'Decima' and the 'Undecima', when he set up Ramos. Against Juventus, in 2017, he played 13 minutes. He made amends in 2018 against Liverpool. He was a substitute, but also key with two goals. His last great show.

Cristiano Ronaldo, the greatest (450 goals in 438 games)

The top scorer in the history of Real Madrid. There is no phrase that better defines what Ronaldo meant to the club and the club to Ronaldo. He arrived as a star and never came down from that podium. 450 goals in 438 games. That is, at more than one (1.03) per game. Savage. Only in one season, his first, did he score less than 40 goals (33) per season. He scored 249 during the BBC era and 201 before it. He had to be the one to put an end to this historic trident. As a Madridista he won four Ballon d'Or (2014, 2015, 2016 and 2017).

Record breaker. Cristiano Ronaldo broke Real Madrid's goalscoring records during his years in the capital. The flame of the BBC. And so say the numbers. His 450 goals crown him as the top scorer in the history of Real Madrid. Ahead of Benzema, Raul and Di Stefano.

Beloved Champions League. 105 goals as a Madrid player in the Champions League. The number one. Of them, 70 during the BBC era at Madrid. He was always decisive in this competition. Almost half of the 105 were in the knockout stages: 50. And of those 50, 34 were in the years alongside Benzema and Bale.

Benzema, from second to legend (354 goals in 648 games)

He arrived at the age of 22 with the challenge of being Real Madrid's '9' in a team that already has a clear goal scorer: Ronaldo. Despite this, he always contributed. 354 goals and 143 assists. His role as second striker to the Portuguese overshadowed his figures for years. With Ronaldo's departure, from 2018-19, Benzema scored 162 goals for Madrid in 236 games (0.67 average). Before Cristiano's departure, he had scored 192 in 412 (0.47). From then on, in his last three years at Chamartin, he managed to stay above the 30-goal mark.

His first version. Benzema scored 87 goals in 183 games in the pre-BBC period. An average of 0.47. With the arrival of Bale and in those five seasons of the trident, the French striker's average dropped slightly to 0.46, with 105 goals in 229 games. In 2018, he did a 180.

Benzema 2.0. With the departure of CR7 and Bale's flame extinguished, Karim took the reins of Madrid's attack: 162 goals in 236 games (0.67 average) until his recent departure for Arabia. A glorious 2021-22 with 44 goals, 15 in the Champions League, led Real Madrid to their 14th Chamìons League tile as he won the Ballon d'Or.