MADRID, Spain – Real Madrid fans are divided over plans announced this week by club president Florentino Pérez to allow private equity investors to buy up to 10% of the club’s shares.
Some fans of “Los Merengues” said that it would mean selling part of the club, even though Real Madrid remains the richest football club in the world.
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They also pointed out that Real Madrid has already changed its membership rules in recent years, breaching its promise to keep membership within the family and diluting its character.
Others supported the investors’ plan, saying it made good business sense and would not change the trajectory of the highly successful club, which has won 36 Spanish domestic titles and a record 15 trophies in the UEFA Champions League.
Perez insisted that allowing private equity investors – who often invest large sums of money into unlisted companies – to invest in clubs was an “essential project” for the future of football.
Perez spoke to club members on Sunday and said he planned to propose legislative changes to allow outside investors to take a minority stake in the club at an extraordinary session of parliament, the Associated Press reported.
“We will remain a members’ club, but we must create a subsidiary in which Real Madrid’s 100,000 members will always have absolute control,” he said.
“On that basis, this subsidiary only needs to incorporate a minority stake of, say, 5% (and never more than 10%) from one or more investors who are committed to a very long-term investment and are willing to contribute their own resources.”
Perez said it would be “the clearest and most convincing way to evaluate our club.”
The 78-year-old added that it would allow dividend payments to club members, which is currently prohibited.
Perez insisted investors had a duty to “respect our values”, contribute to the club’s growth and “protect our assets from external attacks”.
He said Real Madrid could have the right to buy back assets from investors.
Perez reiterated that members will never lose control of the club.
He said the proposals would see the current membership of 98,272 recognized as the true owners of the club, and that membership numbers would be fixed in the future.
“With this protection in place, no one will be able to diminish our position as owners or change the balance that guarantees Real Madrid’s independence and stability,” Perez said. “It is up to our members today to uphold our culture of values and ensure that our club continues to lead world football for generations to come.”
The Real Madrid president further explained that this reform “will protect the Club from external and internal attacks on our assets, highlight its values and allow us all to recognize the treasures we have as members.”
Spanish club ownership and English clubs
Real Madrid, like Barcelona and a small number of other Spanish soccer clubs, is classified as a non-profit organization because it is owned by club members, or socios. Founded in 1902, Real Madrid has only ever used this ownership model.
This ownership structure prevents large private investors from gaining majority control of the club. It also means they can claim tax benefits.
This is despite the fact that Real Madrid was named the richest soccer club in the world for the fourth consecutive year in 2025, with an estimated market valuation of $6.75 billion, according to the Forbes list. It was also the first club to earn $1 billion in revenue.
Non-profit status allows Spanish clubs to maintain club traditions and allows members to play an active role within the organization.
Graham Hunter, a British soccer journalist who specializes in Spanish soccer, cited the example of Joan Laporta, the current president of Barcelona, another Spanish mega-club.
“Laporta went from being a member and attorney to (club) president in seven years,” he said.
In stark contrast, soccer clubs in England and the United States (Manchester United and Inter Miami are just two examples) have more commercialized ownership structures, which can be owned by individuals, companies, and in some cases acquired on public stock exchanges.
This means that while club performance is often centered around short-term processes such as profit maximization, in Spain clubs are in the hands of fans rather than large private investors, giving them scope to implement long-term business strategies.
If Perez’s plan is carried out, the famous Spanish club could be on par with its foreign rivals.
Louis Vuitton’s prominent billionaire boss Bernard Arnault was named in Spanish media on Monday as a potential investor in the club should new minority shareholder rules be adopted.
fan reaction
Some Real Madrid fans did not share Mr Perez’s enthusiasm for opening up the club to large private investors.
David Garcia, a former season ticket holder at the Santiago Bernabéu stadium, said Perez had previously told fans he intended to keep the club for its members.
“On Sunday, Mr. Florentino (Perez) again misled our members. He told us that access to the club was restricted to children and grandchildren of members to prevent Russians and Chinese from joining,” he told Al Jazeera.
Garcia added that the rules for membership have changed several times in recent years, with Chinese and other foreign nationals now on the membership list.
Alejandro Dominguez, former vice president of Real Madrid Veterans Pena, questioned why external investors were needed to boost the coffers of such a profitable club.
“I don’t understand why we need more money when we are already the richest club in the world?” he told Al Jazeera.
However, Fernando Valdes, a lifelong Real Madrid fan and member of La Gran Familia Supporters Club, said he believed the changes would not damage the club’s character.
“If we had sold a huge chunk of the club to raise money to compete with Paris Saint-Germain, I would be worried because that would change the club forever. But that’s not the case,” he said.
“We need to know more about this, but at first glance it doesn’t seem like there’s anything to worry about. 5% or 10% is nothing.”
David Alvarez, who writes about Real Madrid for El Pais newspaper, said Perez’s ownership plan was not designed to compete with other big-spending clubs such as Manchester City.
“This would allow the club to pay dividends to the Socio (club members), which is currently prohibited by law. They are not looking to do that because they would have to sell more shares to compete with the other big clubs in Europe.”
