LaLiga president Javier Tebas has accused Real Madrid of using “manipulation and deception” after the club issued a statement rejecting allegations about its media strategy.
Tebas said events over the past two days had supported his previous claims about the club’s conduct. He also criticised Real Madrid TV and a banner aimed at him that was displayed by an official supporters’ group at the Bernabeu.
In a lengthy response on social media, Tebas referred to an article he published on 16 October about Tomas Gonzalez-Martin, a journalist at El Debate. Tebas said Gonzalez-Martin functioned as a “mouthpiece” for Real Madrid’s narrative.
On the same day, Real Madrid denied responsibility for the comments, saying they had come from “journalists unrelated to the club”.
Tebas said he had then asked the club to reject publicly claims linking the matter to the “Negreira case”, which the journalist had attributed to sources inside Real Madrid. He also demanded a response to allegations that LaLiga had deliberately damaged the club’s interests through its fixture scheduling.
He called on Real Madrid to publish a complete record of every request it had made to alter fixtures, together with the number of requests that had been approved. Tebas said the information should include even successful applications that might weaken the club’s claim that it was being “persecuted”.
Two days later, on 18 October, Tebas said Real Madrid TV had attacked him again. He also pointed to a banner unfurled by an official supporters’ group which, he said, is directly coordinated and supervised by the club.
The banner read: “This is not football, this is Tebas and Negreira’s dirty work.”
Tebas questioned whether Real Madrid would again describe the message as the personal view of someone “unrelated to the club”. He said the incident was consistent with the narrative he had previously outlined.
He accused the club of singling out individuals and turning them into targets for supporters. In his 16 October article, Tebas had quoted the threat: “I will turn the entire Real Madrid fanbase against you, making it impossible for you to walk down the street.”
He said the events of 18 October demonstrated how criticism of the club’s management could be redirected into hostility towards particular people.
“This practice of targeting individuals, spreading slander, and inciting hostility is deeply irresponsible,” Tebas said. “Those in positions of power must understand the consequences of the statements they promote and amplify.”
Tebas also referred to material published by Real Madrid on 17 October involving what it described as “international media”. He said reports by Reuters, BBC and L’Equipe – all of which Real Madrid had retweeted – showed that the club had initiated the inquiries itself.
According to Tebas, Real Madrid had presented its own demands as support for those demands, which he described as “pure manipulation”.
He said the club’s management repeatedly made accusations, encouraged discontent and targeted individuals before presenting itself as the victim when those methods were challenged.
Real Madrid could continue calling for his resignation, Tebas added, but had still not answered his questions about its sources, the substance of its accusations or its concerns over fixture scheduling since 16 October.
“Everything they do each day further confirms the facts I previously exposed,” he said.
