Legal Victory for Tebas as LaLiga Prevails over Real Madrid and Athletic in CVC Agreement

The court has ruled that LaLiga’s agreement with the investment fund CVC is legal, according to a verdict from the 15th Instance Court of Madrid, disclosed this Tuesday. The lawsuit, brought by Real Madrid and Athletic Club against the agreement in which a majority of LaLiga clubs sold 10% of their television rights to CVC for the next 50 years in exchange for approximately €2 billion, has been dismissed.

This legal triumph marks one of Javier Tebas’s many judicial victories against Florentino Pérez, a case in which Athletic Club was also involved. Initially, FC Barcelona and the RFEF were among the complainants, but their leaders (Joan Laporta and Pedro Rocha) withdrew their support during the proceedings after aligning with LaLiga.

Despite this momentary victory for LaLiga and the 44 clubs that joined the agreement over the last two years, the ruling is subject to appeal at the Provincial Court of Madrid. Real Madrid and Athletic Club are likely to exhaust the appeals process, potentially elevating the case to the Supreme Court.

In response to the verdict, LaLiga released a statement emphasizing the legality of the operation within the existing legal and statutory frameworks. The statement highlights that LaLiga’s statutes and applicable regulations on the management of audiovisual and economic rights of sports entities were not violated during the operation. Both Real Madrid and Athletic Club have yet to comment on the ruling.

The legal dispute, which began more than two years ago, originated when 38 of the 42 clubs in LaLiga accepted an agreement brokered by Javier Tebas in December 2021. The deal involved selling 10% of their television rights to the U.S. investment fund for 50 years, generating around €2 billion, mainly earmarked for infrastructure investments.

Madrid, Barcelona, and Athletic Club, opposing LaLiga’s project from its inception, resorted to legal action against what they deemed an illegal agreement. The lawsuit, spearheaded by Real Madrid, reflects Florentino Pérez’s steadfast rejection of the deal. The RFEF, led by Luis Rubiales, initially joined the opposition to LaLiga but later reversed its stance after the resignation of the former president, aligning with the new leader, Pedro Rocha, at the helm of the federative caretaker.