Real Madrid are preparing to appoint 22-time Grand Slam champion Rafael Nadal to their board of directors, subject to approval by the club’s General Assembly of Delegated Members.
The club’s board agreed at its meeting on 4 November to put Nadal’s appointment to members for ratification. The former tennis player is already an honorary member of Real Madrid.
“It is a source of immense pride for Real Madrid and for all our supporters that a figure of his sporting and personal stature … is to join our Board of Directors,” the club said in a statement.
Real Madrid pointed to Nadal’s record in tennis, which includes 92 tour singles titles, two Olympic gold medals, five Davis Cup victories with Spain and a spell as world number one.
The club also praised qualities it said extended beyond his sporting achievements, including his humility, respect for opponents and commitment to charitable work.
“All these values form part of Real Madrid’s identity, and Rafael Nadal has embodied and championed them throughout his sporting career,” the statement added.
Nadal welcomed the invitation from club president Florentino Perez and the board.
“I would like to thank President Florentino Perez and the Board for inviting me to join the Board of Directors of Real Madrid,” he wrote on social media.
“I have accepted this invitation with great enthusiasm, keen to learn and to contribute as much as I can.”
Nadal retired from professional tennis in November 2024. His long-standing connection with Real Madrid has led to suggestions that he could eventually succeed Perez as president, although Nadal has repeatedly played down the possibility.
Perez, 79, won another four-year term as president in June after the club’s first contested election in two decades.
More than one-third of voting members supported challenger Enrique Riquelme, who opposed proposals to introduce outside investment into Real Madrid, which is owned by its members.
The appointment will therefore need to be formally approved before Nadal takes up his position on the club’s board.
