Real Madrid has once again called for the resignation of La Liga president Javier Tebas after he likened the club's attempts to criticize referees to the propaganda methods used by Nazi Germany.
Read More
On Friday, Tebas took to social media to express his discontent with Real Madrid’s club television channel, which he claims suggests that referees have negatively impacted the team’s performance. The channel frequently highlights what it considers significant officiating errors affecting Real Madrid's matches.
Tebas stated, "The executive of Real Madrid has an orchestra of mouthpieces and Real Madrid leads the way. Its script is always the same: select plays that favor it, repeat the alleged affront, increase suspicion and name enemies. It reminds one of the propaganda techniques that Goebbels used." He clarified that his comments were focused on the techniques and not on the club's ideology or its fans.
In response, Real Madrid issued a statement asserting that Tebas is not fit for his role in representing Spain's top clubs and demanded his immediate resignation. The statement criticized Tebas for showing a "lack of neutrality, respect, and impartiality incompatible with his institutional responsibilities." It characterized his continuous criticisms as detrimental to Spanish football.
Real Madrid's head coach, José Mourinho, has also expressed concerns that the club, which has won 36 Spanish league titles, often suffers due to referee decisions. This follows Madrid's previous demand for Tebas's resignation after he commented on the club’s criticisms of officials following their 2-1 loss to Atlético Madrid in September.
Additionally, Madrid's statement highlighted that Tebas has not adequately addressed the ongoing investigation into allegations that Barcelona made payments to an official within the refereeing committee of the Spanish football federation.
In another matter, Spain’s football federation plans to bring its case to the Court of Arbitration for Sport after FIFA rejected its appeal against sanctions imposed due to Islamophobic chants from supporters during a match against Egypt in March. FIFA fined the federation $20,000 and ordered it to close at least 15% of the available seats for Spain’s next home friendly. This decision followed incidents where Spanish fans chanted offensive remarks during a World Cup warm-up match.