Real Madrid Welcomes Supreme Court Victory Over LaLiga

Real Madrid have hailed a landmark ruling by Spain’s Supreme Court, which on Friday sided with the club in its long-running legal dispute with LaLiga over changes to the distribution of audiovisual revenue.

In an official statement, the club said it “expresses its satisfaction” with the decision, which upholds earlier findings in Real Madrid’s favour and declares unlawful a statutory amendment introduced by LaLiga in 2015. According to the ruling, the Second Additional Provision added to LaLiga’s statutes that year, which modified how TV revenue was allocated for the 2015–16 season, was made “without legal authorisation” and is therefore null and void.

The Supreme Court’s decision reinstates the original revenue-sharing model in place prior to the 2015 amendment:

• 60% of audiovisual income for Primera División clubs
• 40% for Segunda División clubs
• Equal distribution within each category

As a result, LaLiga must now disburse approximately €88 million in additional funds to the 22 clubs that competed in the Segunda División during the 2015–16 campaign. Those clubs include Alavés, Albacete, Alcorcón, Almería, Bilbao Athletic, Córdoba, Elche, Gimnàstic de Tarragona, Girona, Huesca, Leganés, Llagostera, Lugo, Mallorca, Mirandés, Numancia, Osasuna, Ponferradina, Real Oviedo, Tenerife, Real Valladolid and Real Zaragoza.

Real Madrid themselves are set to receive around €8.8 million, an amount the club says it was “unlawfully deprived” of under the invalidated distribution system.

The ruling fully rejects LaLiga’s appeal and affirms the earlier judgement issued by Spain’s National High Court. Real Madrid described the decision as one that “restores legality” and ensures that governance decisions in Spanish football are taken “with full respect for the law and transparency.”

The club emphasised the “fundamental importance” of the verdict for both its own financial interests and those of the Segunda División clubs affected, stating that the Supreme Court has now confirmed they were “unlawfully damaged by LaLiga’s actions.”

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