Problems on the pitch and in the dressing room in Madrid are feeding into the boardroom. This week Florentino Pérez, the club’s all-powerful president, said he would call an election, even though his current term runs for another three years. He vowed not to resign, and lashed out at his various critics, who he blamed for trying to destabilise the club.
“Why do they want to get rid of me? Just because a few people are saying they want to stand for election? Let them stand”, he said.
It’s not that long ago that Pérez was touting his plan to reorganise Real Madrid in order to raise money from investors. The idea was to allow an outside party — perhaps a private equity firm — to buy a stake of 5 to 10 per cent. The proposal is controversial, to say the least, for a club owned by its 100,000 members.
The Spanish club has the highest revenue in football, at more than €1bn a year. Sportico reckons the club is worth $7.7bn; Football Benchmark has a slightly lower figure of around $7.1bn. Pérez has previously said it could be closer to €10bn.
The current crisis could perhaps help grease the wheels of a corporate overhaul if the problems are deemed so severe that only drastic action will do. An infusion of capital, an additional partner and a significant reset of the way the club operates is something we’ve seen unfold at Manchester United after a period of disappointment.
Assuming he emerges victorious, a fresh election might give the 79-year-old Pérez the mandate he needs to start making bigger, bolder changes.
But even a chastened Pérez will have options. Real Madrid already raised money from private equity firm Sixth Street through a joint venture to develop non-football live events at the newly renovated Santiago Bernabéu. Another narrow deal could be an option, as shown by Barcelona’s deal to sell a chunk of media rights to the same fund.
This season has helped make the case for change but also undermined the person leading the charge.
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