It was a significant day on the legal front for Real Madrid, as the club announced two major developments involving ongoing disputes with LaLiga and its president, Javier Tebas.
On one hand, Real Madrid celebrated a definitive victory before Spain’s Supreme Court regarding its exclusion from LaLiga audiovisual rights meetings in 2022. On the other, the club confirmed it had lost its appeal in the long-running legal challenge against LaLiga’s controversial CVC investment deal, while immediately announcing
plans to take that fight to the Supreme Court as well.
The dual announcements highlight the continuing institutional battle between Real Madrid and LaLiga leadership, a conflict that has intensified in recent years over issues ranging from the European Super League to the future commercial structure of Spanish football.
Supreme Court Confirms Real Madrid Victory Over LaLiga
The first announcement concerned a dispute dating back to 2022, when LaLiga prevented Real Madrid and Barcelona from participating in meetings related to the management of audiovisual rights.
At the time, both clubs had publicly committed to the European Super League project. LaLiga argued that their involvement in meetings discussing television rights could create conflicts of interest and potentially harm the collective interests of Spanish football.
Real Madrid challenged those decisions in court, arguing that its participation rights had been unlawfully violated. Spanish courts previously sided with the club, and now the Supreme Court has definitively upheld those rulings.
Real Madrid’s official statement reads:
“Real Madrid CF announces that the Supreme Court has definitively confirmed the nullity of the decisions adopted by the president of LaLiga that prevented the participation of our club in various meetings of the Control Body for the management of audiovisual rights of LaLiga held during the year 2022.
On April 10, 2026, the First Chamber of the Supreme Court dismissed the appeal filed by LaLiga and confirmed the judicial rulings that declared that said decisions violated the participation rights of Real Madrid and were adopted without following the legally required procedure.
Far from accepting this ruling, LaLiga subsequently filed a motion to annul the decision, seeking to challenge a judgment that was already final. The Supreme Court has decided to dismiss the motion and has expressly rejected the use of this mechanism to reopen a legal debate already resolved by the courts.
This new resolution definitively confirms the correctness of the position maintained by Real Madrid CF throughout this procedure and puts an end to the successive attempts by LaLiga to challenge decisions that have been declared contrary to law.
Real Madrid CF expresses its satisfaction with this court ruling, which reaffirms the principles of legality, legal certainty and respect for the rights of the clubs that make up the institutions of professional football.”
The ruling represents another legal setback for Tebas and reinforces Real Madrid’s long-standing argument that, regardless of broader disagreements over the Super League project, the club cannot be excluded from governance structures and decision-making processes established within Spanish football.
Real Madrid Loses CVC Appeal But Takes Fight to Supreme Court
Later in the day, Real Madrid released a second statement addressing a much larger and more consequential dispute: the legality of LaLiga’s agreement with investment firm CVC Capital Partners.
The CVC deal, approved by most LaLiga clubs in 2021, brought billions of euros into Spanish football in exchange for a share of future revenues generated through audiovisual rights and commercial activities. Real Madrid, Barcelona, and Athletic Club have consistently opposed the arrangement, arguing that it improperly affects the rights and long-term interests of all clubs.
The Provincial Court of Madrid ruled against Real Madrid and Athletic Club, dismissing their appeal. Despite respecting the decision, Madrid made clear it intends to continue the legal battle.
The club’s statement reads:
“Real Madrid CF announces that the Provincial Court of Madrid has dismissed the appeal filed jointly by Real Madrid CF and Athletic Club against the agreements approved by LaLiga in relation to the so-called CVC operation.
Real Madrid CF fully respects the court ruling, but strongly disagrees with its conclusions and believes that the sentence does not provide a sufficient answer to issues of extraordinary legal, economic and institutional relevance for the present and future of Spanish professional football.
The ruling essentially bases its decision on the consideration that the payment to CVC constitutes a marketing expense for audiovisual rights and on the understanding that the transaction does not affect the clubs that chose not to participate. Real Madrid CF, on the other hand, maintains that the contested agreements directly affect the audiovisual rights management model, LaLiga’s financial structure, and the legitimate rights and interests of all the clubs participating in the competition.
Our club also believes that an operation destined to project its effects for decades on the economic and governance structure of Spanish professional football requires a particularly rigorous analysis of all the legal issues raised and their present and future consequences.
For all these reasons, Real Madrid CF announces that it will file an appeal before the Supreme Court, understanding that there are issues of clear legal interest that require a ruling from the High Court and the establishment of doctrine on essential aspects of the legal regime applicable to the management and exploitation of audiovisual rights in professional football.
Real Madrid CF will continue to defend, in all appropriate instances, the principles of legality, transparency, legal certainty and protection of the rights and interests of its members and of all the clubs that make up Spanish professional football.”
The decision ensures that one of the most important legal battles in Spanish football will continue, with the Supreme Court now likely to be asked to weigh in on the long-term structure of LaLiga’s commercial rights and governance.
LaLiga Fires Back
Shortly after Real Madrid’s announcement, LaLiga published its own statement celebrating the court’s decision and defending the legality of the CVC agreement.
LaLiga emphasized that the court had once again endorsed the operation and rejected the arguments presented by Real Madrid and Athletic Club.
LaLiga’s statement reads:
“The Provincial Court of Madrid, Section 18, has dismissed in full the appeal filed by Athletic Club and Real Madrid CF against the judgment that had already rejected their claim against LALIGA in relation to the agreements approved by the Extraordinary General Assembly of December 10, 2021.
The resolution confirms the sentence issued by the Court No. 15 of the Civil Section of the Court of First Instance of Madrid on February 19, 2024 and endorses the validity of the challenged agreements, also imposing the costs of the second instance on the appealing clubs.
The ruling rejects the claim that the transaction constitutes a transfer of audiovisual rights to CVC and reiterates that the clubs remain the holders of said rights, without prejudice to the joint marketing legally assigned to LALIGA. Furthermore, the Court considers that CVC’s contribution is structured through a joint venture agreement intended to finance the member clubs, improve the competition, and maximize the revenue generated from the commercialization of audiovisual rights.
The court also ruled out that clubs not participating in the operation should bear the costs, concluding that the established mechanism guarantees economic neutrality for them. Specifically, the ruling states that non-participating clubs do not have to assume the expenses arising from the operation and that the risk of non-payment, if any, falls on the participating clubs.
The Provincial Court also rejected the claims regarding an alleged lack of information, considering it proven that LALIGA provided the clubs with the necessary documentation, offered meetings to answer questions, and allowed the review of additional documentation with advisors. The ruling concludes that the clubs had sufficient information to make an informed decision regarding the agreements submitted to the Assembly.
The ruling also confirms that the creation of the subsidiary LGI falls within LALIGA’s capacity for self-organization and does not negate its essential functions, as LALIGA retains the powers of marketing, management, and organization of the competition. Furthermore, the Court emphasizes that LALIGA retains more than 91% of LGI’s share capital and the right to appoint the majority of its directors, thus confirming its continued control over the entity.
LALIGA welcomes this resolution, which provides further judicial support for the agreements with CVC, reinforces its legal certainty and confirms the legal correctness of a strategic operation aimed at strengthening the competition, supporting the clubs and maximizing the value of the audiovisual rights of Spanish professional football.”
