Real Madrid has won a legal battle with a residents association that accused the club of allowing dangerous levels of noise pollution during concerts at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium.
A Spanish court has cleared both the club's stadium company, Real Madrid Estadio SL, and Jose Angel Sanchez, the administrator who serves as right-hand man to club president Florentino Perez, of any criminal responsibility. The ruling came after a judge in January found that concerts at the venue, including a Taylor Swift show, had breached noise limits.
The court stated plainly that "neither Jose Angel Sanchez nor Real Madrid Estadio SL bear responsibility for any criminal offence in relation to the concerts held at the Santiago Bernabeu stadium." Real Madrid said the judgment made clear that concert promoting companies, not the stadium or the club, are responsible for meeting decibel limits.
A spokesman for Madrid's courts told news agencies they could not comment publicly on the ruling for now because not all parties involved had been notified of the decision. The verdict could allow the club to resume hosting major concerts once sound-proofing improvements are finished at the newly rebuilt stadium.
Real Madrid spent over 1.5 billion euros, roughly 1.76 billion dollars, upgrading the Bernabeu after it reopened in 2023. The club had hoped to use concerts and events as a major revenue stream. Since September 2024, however, many scheduled shows have moved to Atletico Madrid's Metropolitano stadium, which sits outside the city limits.
The court's decision removes the criminal cloud hanging over the club's concert operations. Real Madrid will now likely push ahead with sound improvements needed to bring those high-profile shows back home.
