Under the lights of the Madrid derby, two familiar faces from the French game stepped into a new role. Claude Makelele and Ludovic Giuly have joined Disney+ as La Liga consultants, appearing around the Wanda Metropolitano pitch as Atlético Madrid beat Real Madrid 2-1.
Key takeaways
- Claude Makelele and Ludovic Giuly are new Disney+ analysts for its La Liga coverage.
- They were introduced during Atlético Madrid’s 2-1 derby victory over Real Madrid.
- Makelele played in Spain for Celta Vigo and Real Madrid between 1998 and 2003.
- Giuly represented Barcelona from 2004 to 2007 and won two league titles there.
- Disney+ holds the complete rights package for Spain’s top division for the next three seasons.
Former PSG teammates reunite on screen
The two former France internationals join Julien Brun and Omar Da Fonseca in Disney+’s team covering the Spanish championship. Their appointment brings together two players whose careers crossed at Paris Saint-Germain before they moved into broadcasting.
Makelele arrives with a particularly deep connection to the Spanish game. The former midfielder spent five years in La Liga, first with Celta Vigo and then at Real Madrid, where he won the Spanish title twice.
Giuly also built a major part of his playing reputation across the Pyrenees. After leaving Monaco, the former winger starred for Barcelona between 2004 and 2007, collecting two La Liga crowns in a side featuring Ronaldinho, Samuel Eto’o and Lionel Messi.
Spanish football rights secured for three seasons
Disney+ had already strengthened its commentary line-up by bringing in Brun and Da Fonseca. The additions of Makelele and Giuly add two former Champions League-level players with first-hand knowledge of the biggest stadiums, clubs and rivalries in Spain.
The platform owns the full broadcasting rights to La Liga for the coming three seasons, and its new consultants made their first public appearance in a fixture that delivered the old Madrid intensity: Atlético taking the derby, 2-1, against their city rivals.
