By Peter Omopo
Real Madrid have demanded the resignation of La Liga president Javier Tebas over comments comparing the Spanish club’s management and television channel to propaganda techniques associated with Nazi Germany’s propaganda chief, Joseph Goebbels.
The club described Tebas’ remarks as “deeply offensive” and “morally repugnant”, insisting that they were inappropriate for someone occupying senior positions in Spanish football.
Real Madrid called for Tebas to step down as president of La Liga and vice-president of the Spanish Football Association (RFEF), according to a statement issued by the club.
“Real Madrid considers it absolutely intolerable and extraordinarily serious that someone holding two positions of utmost responsibility in Spanish football resorts to a comparison with the propaganda methods of the Nazi regime to discredit our club, its management and its television,” the statement read.
Tebas made the comments in a lengthy post on X on Friday, criticising what he described as Real Madrid’s communication strategy and its repeated promotion of grievances against perceived opponents.
He wrote that the club’s management coordinated its messaging through various outlets, with Real Madrid TV playing a leading role.
Tebas added that the approach involved selecting favourable incidents, repeatedly highlighting grievances, encouraging suspicion and identifying supposed enemies. He compared these methods to propaganda techniques used by Goebbels, citing systematic repetition and the construction of an enemy.
The La Liga president later clarified that his comparison concerned the propaganda techniques themselves rather than Nazi ideology.
However, Real Madrid rejected the explanation, arguing that it did not diminish what the club called the “institutionally unworthy nature” of his statements.
The club also described the remarks as another episode in what it considers a pattern of attacks by Tebas against Real Madrid, its president and its media outlets.
The latest dispute adds to a series of disagreements between Tebas and Real Madrid over refereeing decisions and the proposed European Super League.
Last month, Tebas criticised the club after it alleged that a refereeing conspiracy was working against it.
He had also opposed Real Madrid and its president, Florentino Perez, over the club’s involvement in plans for a European Super League in 2021.
In 2025, Tebas accused Real Madrid of having “lost their head” after the club lodged a formal complaint with the Spanish Football Association over officiating in La Liga.
