La Liga war! Real Madrid and Javier Tebas at odds as 'conspiracy' accusations continue

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FT Desk

We are only seven games into the new season in Spain but the political drama has already started with gusto following a fiery Madrid derby on Sunday.

Atletico won 2-1 at the Wanda Metropolitano, with Dean Huijsen being sent off early doors for Real Madrid, but head coach Jose Mourinho was adamant that the hosts should have had two men dismissed as well.

Replays showed he had a point with Kang-in Lee's tackle on Federico Valverde, but Cristian Romero's 50-50 challenge with Jude Bellingham was debatable. In the post-match press conference, he held up printed pictures of both tackles to show the media and didn't really address his team's performance.

He would, in true Mourinho style, launch an attack against refereeing standards in Spain.

Ya empiezan los portaCOCes y la televisión del régimen a construir el relato de siempre: la conspiración permanente. Cuando no es Negreira, es el árbitro; cuando no, que no es internacional. Todos los clubes pueden ser arbitrados por colegiados internacionales y por quienes no lo…

— Javier Tebas Medrano (@Tebasjavier) September 22, 2026

La Liga president Javier Tebas then responded to an article by Real Madrid-leaning outlet El Debate, which suggested there was a "conspiracy against Los Blancos.

"Claiming that referees are directed against Real Madrid is living in another galaxy," Tebas said on social media.

"That narrative serves as an excuse to cover up other shortcomings that are plain to see in these first matches of the season.

"It's more comfortable to point to a conspiracy than to explain what's happening on the pitch."

Real Madrid took umbrage with Tebas' comments and released a statement of their own:

"In the face of the demonstrations made by the president of LaLiga, Javier Tebas Medrano, Real Madrid C. F. wants to state the following: Our club considers it intolerable that the president of LaLiga uses his institutional position to continue disqualifying and attacking Real Madrid in the way he does in each of his interventions.

"And it is very worrying that those who have the responsibility to represent and protect the interests of all LaLiga clubs, continue to be repeatedly obsessed with Real Madrid, making our club the permanent object of their public attacks."

Tebas had said: "GET THE BLINDERS OFF! It's September, and they're already calling the League adulterated. No one with common sense buys that old excuse anymore."

That section was particularly offensive to Madrid, who said: "His last intervention is especially serious and incomprehensible, inappropriate for a responsible manager, because he does so by commenting on the article of an independent journalist in a digital medium. However, he reacts against our club, also allowing himself to value our sports strategy, something that is total nonsense and irresponsible."

Real Madrid then apparently called for Tebas to be replaced or for his behaviour to change drastically.

"It is quite surprising that the president of LaLiga dedicates his time and his personal channels to trying to publicly discredit Real Madrid, instead of contributing, from the responsibility of his position, to generate confidence in the institutions that must guarantee the impartiality of the competition," the statement continued.

"In this way, it continues to damage the image of our competition and Spanish football in the world."

"In accordance with this inadequate and sustained behaviour over time, we understand that the professional football competition in Spain urgently needs a leader capable of managing it and developing its full potential with the elementary duty of neutrality. It needs someone who understands the nature of his position, because the president of LaLiga is not the owner of the competition, but a manager at the service of the clubs that integrate it and that entrust him with their direction. The clubs need someone to serve this mission honestly."

Tebas responds again

Tebas responded again with another social media post. In it, he points to Real Madrid president Florentino Perez for trying to act as the custodian of La Liga. The pair has long been at loggerheads due to Perez continued criticism of officials.

"I've read the statement. I fully agree with one phrase: the president of LaLiga is not the owner of the competition. The president of Real Madrid isn't either," Tebas posted.

"Representing all the clubs requires defending equality and equity among them. Also when it's claimed that "LaLiga is worth nothing" without Real Madrid or that referees harm "the business that feeds them." On those statements, which prompted my response, your statement doesn't say a word.

"Now they take cover in the fact that I responded to an 'independent' journalist. But neither the narrative is new nor is the strategy of diverting attention from other problems. They've been doing it for years from Real Madrid TV and through their mouthpieces, talking and writing about a tampered League week after week. Don't try to present as an external opinion the discourse they feed from their own television and from the club's instances.

"They demand that I contribute to generating trust in the impartiality of the competition. Precisely for that reason, I reject the narrative that referees are directed against Real Madrid. Criticizing a refereeing decision is legitimate. Turning every detriment into proof of persecution is something else. Does that generate trust or damage the image of Spanish football?

"They confuse neutrality with independence. If by neutrality they mean not taking sides on anything, not even between what's right and what's wrong, they're asking me to renounce my responsibility. Independence requires deciding with one's own judgment, without pressures or subordinations, applying the same rules to everyone and defending the common interest. That implies making decisions and taking positions, even if Real Madrid doesn't like it.

"Defending a club's interests doesn't mean assuming its discourse. And representing everyone doesn't mean obeying the most powerful either. The interests of the competition, of LaLiga, must be defended.

"I'm neither the owner of LaLiga nor will I manage it as if it belonged to a single club. Respect for all. Subordination to none."

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FT Desk

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