Real Madrid have called for new leadership at LaLiga after condemning public remarks by league president Javier Tebas as intolerable.
In an official club statement dated 22 September 2026, Real Madrid said Tebas was using his institutional position to discredit and attack the club. The club argued that the person responsible for representing all LaLiga clubs should not make Real Madrid a permanent target of public criticism.
The exchange followed Real Madrid’s 2-1 derby defeat by Atlético Madrid on 20 September and subsequent criticism of the refereeing. Real Madrid’s match report on the club website was headlined around a “dreadful” refereeing performance. Manager José Mourinho said Atlético should have had two first-half red cards and argued his side needed a level playing field to compete for the title.
Tebas responded on social media, writing that claims referees are directed against Real Madrid amounted to “living in another galaxy.” He said that narrative was being used to cover shortcomings visible in the opening matches of the season, and that it was more comfortable to point to a conspiracy than to explain what was happening on the pitch.
Real Madrid’s statement said Tebas’s latest intervention was especially serious because it reacted to an independent journalist’s article while also judging the club’s sporting strategy — something the club called wholly irresponsible. The club said the LaLiga president should be building trust in institutions that guarantee competitive impartiality, not damaging the image of Spanish football.
On that basis, Real Madrid said Spanish professional football urgently needs a leader capable of running the competition with basic neutrality. The club stressed that the LaLiga president is not the owner of the competition but a manager serving the clubs that entrust him with its direction.
Tebas has led LaLiga since 2013. His current mandate runs to 2027 after he was re-elected unopposed in December 2023. Relations between the league office and Real Madrid have been strained for years, including disputes linked to the European Super League project and audiovisual-rights governance. In June, Spain's Supreme Court ruled in Real Madrid’s favour in a case over participation rights in LaLiga’s audiovisual control body.
Real Madrid sit fourth in LaLiga, six points behind leaders Barcelona after seven matches. Reuters reported that it had asked LaLiga for comment. No change of LaLiga presidency has been announced.