Real Madrid President Florentino Perez has used the club’s General Assembly to launch a fresh critique against La Liga and rivals Barcelona, framing his club as the sole guardian of football integrity in Spain.
Real Madrid President Revisits Miami Plan in Criticism of La Liga
Perez revisited the failed plan for Barcelona and Villarreal to play a league match in Miami.
He strongly criticized La Liga president Javier Tebas for promoting the idea, stating it was “not normal” for a Spanish league match to be held abroad.
He also pointed out that even Barcelona’s captain, Frenkie de Jong, had expressed doubts about the proposal.
However, Perez did not mention that the Miami plan was an official La Liga initiative designed to increase the competition’s global profile, a goal he has previously supported when it aligns with Real Madrid’s commercial interests.
The project ultimately collapsed due to significant political, financial, and logistical hurdles, not because of any action from Real Madrid.
The president further positioned his club as the only one willing to take a stand, claiming, “Only Real Madrid” filed a formal complaint with the Spanish National Sports Council over the issue.
Perez also returned to the ongoing Negreira case, using it to question Barcelona’s historic success.
He called it “a shame” that no Spanish referees were selected for an upcoming FIFA Club World Cup, indirectly linking this to the scandal.
He emphasized that it is “not normal” for Barcelona to have paid millions to the former vice-president of the refereeing committee.
In his remarks, Perez presented a selective narrative. Barcelona maintain that all payments were for legitimate consultancy reports and have cooperated with investigations.
No football governing body has formally accused the club of match-fixing.
The repeated attacks highlight Perez’s strategy of creating tension with La Liga and Barcelona rather than focusing on collaborative solutions for Spanish football.
