The feud between Real Madrid and Javier Tebas has taken on new dimensions, following a public statement by the president of LaLiga, who harshly criticized the way in which the Spanish club and its official TV channel, Real Madrid TV, handle refereeing issues, highlight controversial plays, and shape their public messaging.

Tembas also lashed out at journalists who, in his view, parrot the positions of Real Madrid’s management, specifically mentioning Tomás González Martín and Jesús Urdiola. At the same time, he argued that Real Madrid TV is a central part of a communications strategy that systematically portrays the “Queen” as a victim of refereeing injustices.

The sharpest point of his remarks was his reference to the propaganda methods used by Joseph Goebbels, Minister of Propaganda in Nazi Germany. The LaLiga president clarified that the comparison referred to propaganda techniques and not to Nazi ideology or Real Madrid fans.

At the same time, he raised the issue of selective reporting of incidents involving refereeing, as well as the way Real Madrid handles its disputes with LaLiga regarding the scheduling of matches. In fact, he requested that all of the club’s requests for changes to match dates and times be made public, as well as the organizing body’s relevant decisions, so that there is a complete picture of which requests were accepted or rejected.

Tembas also referred to schedule changes related to events at the “Santiago Bernabéu,” arguing that the discussion about schedules cannot be limited solely to cases that support the narrative of unfair treatment against Real Madrid.

Here is Tembas’s statement in detail:

“Tomás González Martín and Jesús Urdiola, every day it becomes increasingly difficult to distinguish your articles from an official statement by Real Madrid’s management.

Tomás, you in particular, have become the management’s official spokesperson, to the point where you use phrases identical to those I’ve heard from a high-ranking official at Valdebebas. There are many references to “club sources,” but very little critical distance from what those sources are trying to convey. You’re like a parrot—only with a keyboard.

And just so there’s no confusion about who we’re talking about: the high-ranking official whose statements you’re repeating is not the same person who calls media editorial teams, demanding the removal of journalists and pressuring for the removal of company executives. These are different people. And these phone calls and this pressure are not a thing of the past. They are happening now. And, in fact, very intensely. In the case of *El Debate*, he won’t call—though perhaps he will, just to…

Real Madrid’s management conducts an orchestra of mouthpieces, with Real Madrid TV setting the tempo. The script is always the same: they select the moments that serve their purpose, reinforce the sense of injustice, foster suspicion, and single out enemies.

This method is reminiscent of the propaganda mechanisms employed by Goebbels, Minister of Propaganda in Nazi Germany: systematic repetition, the fabrication of an enemy, and the subordination of facts to a specific narrative. The comparison pertains to these propaganda techniques and not to an ideology, nor, of course, to Real Madrid fans.

Real Madrid TV is a central part of this mechanism. Where is the comprehensive analysis of each matchday’s games? Where are the potential refereeing errors that disadvantage other clubs or those that favor Real Madrid? If they examined all matches under the same magnifying glass, the result might undermine their narrative.

However, the narrative demands that Real Madrid always be portrayed as the victim. Thus, we’ve reached the point where even a correct decision is portrayed as a refereeing error, while the Negreira case is used as a go-to explanation for any decision they don’t like. Suspicion is presented as a proven fact, and the conclusion has been written before the match has even begun.

The same tactic is now being applied to the issue of schedules: they highlight whatever fuels the sense of injustice while concealing the context that would allow us to verify whether the claims are valid.

So let’s talk about work schedules, Thomas. Let that high-ranking official who feeds the media explain how many requests to change the time and day Real Madrid has submitted and how many of them have been accepted. In this regard, they’re at the top of the list. He should also include the ones that were accepted. Let’s not have him mention only what suits his agenda to create the usual controversy.

He should also include requests related to the schedule, in order to facilitate the events permitted under the “super license” at the Santiago Bernabéu. When it comes to asking for the event to be adapted to their needs, they show great initiative. When it comes time to acknowledge the requests that were granted, their memory is clearly more selective.

This is the report that needs to be made public: what Real Madrid requested, what was granted, and what could not be accommodated—along with the reasons why. The schedule also affects the opponent, other clubs, the fans, and the tournament’s television commitments. A request does not become a right simply because it comes from Real Madrid, just as a refusal does not in itself prove that there is discrimination. LaLiga defends its competition.

What is not serious is to request adjustments to the dates, times, and schedule and then present every disagreement as proof that LaLiga is acting against the club’s interests. If we want to talk about the treatment the club has received, we need to document the full extent of that treatment.

Tomás, do you have specific questions to ask your sources? And Real Madrid TV has material for a show: the club’s requests and the responses it received. We’ll see if they devote the same enthusiasm to this story as they do to the videos showing alleged injustices.

Then, the rest of the media outlets amplify the message. Real Madrid TV provides the footage, others write the headlines, and everyone repeats the same accusation.”

Real Madrid’s Response and the Call for Resignation

Real Madrid’s reaction was immediate and particularly harsh. In an official statement, the club described Tembas’s remarks as “absolutely unacceptable and extremely serious,” arguing that comparing the practices of its management and its television station to those of the Nazi regime is deeply offensive.

The Madrid club emphasized that the LaLiga president’s clarification that he was not referring to Nazi ideology does not, in their view, diminish the gravity of his remarks. At the same time, they cited this as yet another episode in Tembas’s repeated attacks against the club, its president, and its media outlets.

Real Madrid also focused particularly on the Negreira case, accusing Tebas of focusing on discrediting the club rather than using his institutional positions to shed light on the case and reform Spanish soccer.

In its statement, the “Queen” recalled that it has addressed UEFA directly, requesting a full investigation into the payments made over a number of years by Barcelona to José María Enríquez Negreira, former vice president of the Spanish Football Federation’s technical refereeing committee.

Furthermore, it reiterated its call for a comprehensive overhaul of the refereeing system and the federation’s administrative, oversight, and disciplinary control of the federation, including the replacement of those who held positions of responsibility during the period in question.

Real Madrid concluded its statement by arguing that Tempas’s repeated behavior demonstrates a lack of neutrality, respect, and impartiality—qualities which, as the club noted, are incompatible with his institutional responsibilities.

For this reason, it demanded his immediate resignation from both the presidency of LaLiga and his position as vice president of the Spanish Football Federation, arguing that his public statements and conduct render him institutionally unfit to continue holding those specific offices.

This new confrontation adds yet another chapter to the long-standing dispute between Real Madrid’s management and the head of LaLiga, centered on refereeing, the Negreira case, the handling of controversial plays in the media, and the functioning of Spanish soccer’s governing bodies.

The Madrid club’s statement reads as follows:

“In response to the statements made by Javier Tebas, president of LaLiga and vice president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation, in which he compares the methods used by Real Madrid’s management to those employed by Joseph Goebbels, Minister of Propaganda under the Nazi regime, and pointing to Real Madrid TV as a tool of this alleged strategy, Real Madrid states the following:

Real Madrid considers it absolutely unacceptable and extremely serious that an individual who holds two top positions of responsibility in Spanish soccer would resort to comparing thethe club’s propaganda methods to those of the Nazi regime in order to discredit the club, as well as its management and its television channel. The clarification that he is not referring to Nazi ideology in no way diminishes the deeply offensive, morally repugnant, and institutionally unworthy nature of his statements.

These statements constitute yet another episode in Javier Tebas’s repeated attacks against Real Madrid, its president, and its media outlets. It is unacceptable for him to use even questions, information, or opinions from journalists who are not affiliated with the club in order to direct his disparaging comments against us, attributing to us responsibility for the actions of third parties with which we have absolutely no connection.

Particularly serious is the fact that Tempas is using these statements to cast doubt on the lawful actions of Real Madrid and Real Madrid TV regarding the Negreira case.

Due to the lack of response to the extreme gravity of the Negreira case from the two institutions in which Javier Tebas holds top leadership positions, our club was forced to appeal directly to UEFA, requesting a full investigation into the payments made over a number of years by Barcelona to the vice-chairman of the Technical Committee of Referees, as well as the implementation of the necessary measures to ensure the integrity of the competitions.

Real Madrid is also calling for a comprehensive overhaul of the refereeing system, as well as the federation’s administrative, management, oversight, and disciplinary control of the federation, by replacing those who held positions of responsibility during that specific period.

It is particularly noteworthy that Javier Tebas, president of LaLiga and vice president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation, to which the Technical Committee of Referees reports, is devoting his efforts to defaming Real Madrid, rather than using his institutional authority to the investigation of these extremely serious events and the necessary renewal of Spanish soccer.

Javier Tebas’s repeated behavior demonstrates a lack of neutrality, respect, and impartiality—qualities incompatible with his institutional responsibilities. His constant attacks against Real Madrid and those calling for transparency and reform constitute, in our club’s view, a true scourge for Spanish soccer.

For all these reasons, Real Madrid considers that Javier Tebas’s repeated statements and behavior would be unacceptable in any European sports organization governed by the principles of respect, neutrality, and integrity, and that they render him institutionally unfit to continue holding the positions he currently holds.

Therefore, Real Madrid demands his immediate resignation from his positions as president of LaLiga and vice president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation.

Real Madrid will continue to defend its rights, its institutional prestige, a full investigation into the Negreira case, and the necessary revitalization of Spanish soccer.”

*photo source: AP