Real Madrid demand Tebas resigns over Nazi propaganda comparison
Javier Tebas
Alberto Jiménez MendezReal Madrid have demanded the immediate resignation of La Liga president Javier Tebas after the league chief compared the club’s media campaign against refereeing to Nazi propaganda tactics.
The extraordinary escalation in the long-running feud between Spain’s top flight and its biggest club came after Tebas posted a lengthy critique on social media, targeting the coverage broadcast on the Spanish champion’s official television channel.
Tebas sparks outrage with Goebbels comparison
In his online post, the league chief took aim at the way Real Madrid Television highlights refereeing mistakes prior to matches, accusing the club of orchestrating a coordinated attempt to undermine match officials.
Writing on social media platform X, Javier Tebas said:
“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.”
The league leader went on to explicitly draw parallels with Joseph Goebbels, the minister who directed propaganda in Third Reich Germany.
Elaborating on the online platform, Javier Tebas added:
“That method recalls propaganda mechanisms exploited by Goebbels, Nazi Germany’s minister of propaganda: systematic repetition, construction of an enemy, and subordination of facts to the narrative.”
Tebas subsequently attempted to clarify his comments, insisting that his comparison applied strictly to communication strategy rather than political ideology or the team’s supporters.
Bernabeu hierarchy strikes back
The Spanish giants reacted with fierce indignation, calling for Tebas to step down from both his role as president of La Liga and his vice-presidency at the Spanish Football Federation.
Responding in a strongly worded public statement, Real Madrid stated:
“His constant attacks on Real Madrid and those demanding transparency and regeneration represent, in our club’s view, a genuine scourge for Spanish football.”
The European champions dismissed any suggestion that the La Liga president’s disclaimer softened the impact of his original remarks.
Rejecting the explanation offered by the league boss, Real Madrid said:
“The clarification that he is not referring to Nazi ideology does not mitigate the deeply offensive, morally repugnant, and institutionally unworthy nature of his statements.”
A relationship at breaking point
This bitter exchange represents the lowest point in a relationship that has been deteriorating for years between Tebas and Real Madrid president Florentino Perez.
Tensions previously boiled over during disputes surrounding the proposed European Super League in 2021, while Madrid also submitted formal complaints about refereeing standards after losing to Atletico Madrid earlier in the season.
The Spanish powerhouse argued that the league president should focus his efforts on the ongoing judicial investigation regarding Barcelona’s historical payments to former refereeing official Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, rather than attacking the media coverage at the Santiago Bernabeu.
