Real Madrid

[sean]

Why the big draw for the world's top players? A ham-fisted attempt at a real club. The players are rich beyond what they can spend anyway, I can't understand why any top player would want the grief in that poxy club. Fickle fans, poorly ran from top to bottom. Why?

[SkippyjonJones]

money. low taxes. decent weather.

[Sion]

fame, popularity, millions of asians wearing their name on their backs

[Tosh]

Money

Playing with the "best players in the world"

Weather

More money

Maybe a trophy or medal

[carrafan]

Biggest club in the world.

[Hassony]

Prior to last season they won two titles back to back, and they have won the title 4 times in the past 9 seasons

 

and they have a decent record in Europe as well

[JonShar]

I'm much the same as Hassony - much as I hate them, I'm not sure how anyone can question a pro-footballer wanting to play for them if they come calling. One of the top 10 clubs in the world, not sure why that's hard to understand.

[Leo No.8]

The thing that baffles me more is where the f*ck do they get their money from?

 

Its seriously dodgy - Perez is a billionaire but not to the kind of Abramovic sugar daddy levels who can come in and pour enormous amounts of money into the club. He's probably around the same level in terms of wealth as Tom Hicks.

 

Clearly the Madrid council has set up a deal to purchase a portaloo, two used fax machines (fire damaged due to over-use in relation to transfer deals) 17 biro pens, an embossed 'Berndt Schuster' club tie and a pair of Fabio Capello's horn rimmed glasses he left behind on his last day to pay for Ronaldo and Kaka.

[John am Rhein]

Why the big draw for the world's top players? A ham-fisted attempt at a real club. The players are rich beyond what they can spend anyway, I can't understand why any top player would want the grief in that poxy club. Fickle fans, poorly ran from top to bottom. Why?

 

our only realistic challenger for the title 'greatest club in the history of football'

[Zoob]

The thing that baffles me more is where the f*ck do they get their money from?

 

Its seriously dodgy - Perez is a billionaire but not to the kind of Abramovic sugar daddy levels who can come in and pour enormous amounts of money into the club. He's probably around the same level in terms of wealth as Tom Hicks.

 

Clearly the Madrid council has set up a deal to purchase a portaloo, two used fax machines (fire damaged due to over-use in relation to transfer deals) 17 biro pens, an embossed 'Berndt Schuster' club tie and a pair of Fabio Capello's horn rimmed glasses he left behind on his last day to pay for Ronaldo and Kaka.

 

 

Interesting article here - explaining in part - how they can afford to spend as much as they can

 

Obviously the tax law makes Spain more appealing than the UK if you're after $, and it's quite unbelievable how much they make on their TV deal. Also, the article doesn't even mention the absurd dodgy help that Real Madrid have received in the past (like the counsil re-zoning their training ground, paying double what it was worth to buy it from them (thus wiping out most of their debts), and then loaning it back at a cheap rate...)

 

 

Regardless of Kaka, and anyone else they sign (and so far aside from one article linking them with Vidic, it's all been about buying attackers), it would be funny if Madrid continue with the same defence they had last year.

[_00_deathscar]

our only realistic challenger for the title 'greatest club in the history of football'

 

Milan.

[John am Rhein]

Milan.

 

We're greater and so are Real Madrid

[Duncan Disorderly]

The thing that baffles me more is where the f*ck do they get their money from?

Constantly bank-rolled by the government.

 

"Oh, yer in a bit of a scrape? Tell you what, we'll buy that land off you for an over-inflated price, build you a state-of-the-art training facility and hand you 90 million Euros a year. How does that sound?"

[_00_deathscar]

Where do Barcelona get their money from?

[The Hitman]

The world's greatest fascist club.

Make into a superpower by the Generalissimo himself,loads of money and bent referees.

Great history they have.

[Leo No.8]

Interesting article here - explaining in part - how they can afford to spend as much as they can

 

Obviously the tax law makes Spain more appealing than the UK if you're after $, and it's quite unbelievable how much they make on their TV deal. Also, the article doesn't even mention the absurd dodgy help that Real Madrid have received in the past (like the counsil re-zoning their training ground, paying double what it was worth to buy it from them (thus wiping out most of their debts), and then loaning it back at a cheap rate...)

 

This bit is the part that galls me:

 

Finally, there's Real's status as, effectively, a non-profit social trust. This means they do not need to generate £30 million a year just to service their debt (like United).

 

Whatever debt they hold (and detail here is murky) is with local banks, many of whom are under political and social pressure not to tighten the screws. Real are too big and too important to fail or to come under the kind of debt pressures that affect traditional clubs. The club's social, political and economic significance dwarfs that of any other club in the world, with the possible exception of Barcelona. In that sense, they play by a different set of rules.

 

A 'non profit social trust'? How unfair is that to every other football club in Spain and to a certain extent Europe? Should they be allowed by UEFA to 'play by a different set of rules'?

 

The tax thing is interesting as well; I've got a mate who has gone to work in scientific research in Valencia and he says the tax is crippling; about 50% of his salary. So this is obviously a benefit for the rich only which seems extremely unfair.

Edited June 10, 2009 by Leo No.8

[Stevie H]

i actually like that part of it. makes the point that it's more than a business, it's actually important to the fabric of the city and its community. how much is a season ticket there?

[Leo No.8]

i actually like that part of it. makes the point that it's more than a business, it's actually important to the fabric of the city and its community. how much is a season ticket there?

 

See your point, but its unfair they should be allowed a different set of rules financially.

[mick]

Why the big draw for the world's top players? A ham-fisted attempt at a real club. The players are rich beyond what they can spend anyway, I can't understand why any top player would want the grief in that poxy club. Fickle fans, poorly ran from top to bottom. Why?

 

Couldn't disagree more - despite being the Kings club etc they are one of the true giants of world football. Just because they are run in a certain way doesn't mean they are "ham-fisted attempt at a real club". Its the norm on the continent - do you think its all sweetness and light at Barca when they are in the doldrums?

 

You could say the same above about Inter, Milan and Juve. Are they not real clubs?

 

If you had subsituted the word Chelsea for Real you may have had some sort of point.

Edited June 10, 2009 by mick

[Sion]

Where do Barcelona get their money from?

 

I'm guessing here, the 90,000+ seater stadium and world wide fan base?

And that's ignoring the £100m+ a year TV money and sale of players like Figo

[PhilM]

I'd rather play for Barca.