Madrid’s latest dispute has moved beyond one disputed derby decision and into the wider argument over how Spanish football is governed. After Real Madrid’s 2-1 defeat to Atlético Madrid at the Riyadh Air Metropolitano, LaLiga president Javier Tebas said his relationship with Florentino Pérez cannot be repaired while the Real Madrid president remains in office.
Key takeaways
- Javier Tebas said his conflict is with Florentino Pérez’s leadership and vision for football, rather than with Real Madrid as a club.
- Real Madrid protested refereeing decisions after the 2-1 loss to Atlético Madrid, including two incidents they believed merited red cards.
- Miguel Ángel Ortiz Arias was the referee at the centre of the derby controversy.
- Tebas accepted that an on-field decision may have been wrong, but rejected claims that LaLiga’s competition has been manipulated.
- The LaLiga president argued that questioning the integrity of the championship damages every club in the division.
A fracture between LaLiga and Real Madrid
Tebas made clear that he separates his attachment to Real Madrid from his disagreement with the club’s current hierarchy. He said he has supported Madrid since childhood, but described Pérez’s football model as fundamentally incompatible with the one defended by LaLiga.
“As long as Florentino is Real Madrid’s president, the relationship cannot be repaired,” Tebas said. “The issue is Florentino’s model for football; we do not support it. I disagree completely with the current directors, although I have nothing against Real Madrid. It has been my team since I was a child.”
The remarks follow an increasingly sharp exchange between the Bernabéu club and the league after the capital derby. Real Madrid, managed by José Mourinho, voiced its frustration with the officiating after losing 2-1 across the city, arguing that Atlético should have received two dismissals in moments that could have altered the match.
Derby complaints and the integrity of the competition
LaLiga’s response has been that possible refereeing mistakes do not amount to evidence of a campaign against Real Madrid. Tebas said criticism of decisions is understandable, but drew a line at suggestions that the competition itself has been compromised.
He indicated that one incident could have resulted in a red card, while maintaining that it was not as obvious as Madrid’s critics had portrayed it. For Tebas, the larger concern is the language used around the controversy: alleging that LaLiga is distorted or lacks integrity is, he said, an accusation aimed not only at the league but at every participating club.
The dispute therefore remains rooted in more than one referee’s afternoon at the Metropolitano. In a season where Madrid’s institutional voice has continued to challenge LaLiga, Tebas has placed the divide directly at the door of Pérez and the competing vision of the game represented by Real Madrid’s leadership.
