Category Archives: Real Madrid

Real Madrid pauses concerts after ‘torture-drome’ noise complaints

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Football club announces cancellation or rescheduling of gigs at refurbished Santiago Bernabéu stadium

Real Madrid has cancelled or rescheduled all concerts at its Santiago Bernabéu stadium and is working to comply with council noise regulations after local people complained that a series of loud, late gigs had turned the arena into a “torture-drome”.

Although best known as the home of one of Spain’s greatest football teams, the Bernabéu – which has just undergone a five-year, €900m (£760m) refurbishment – has hosted a string of high-profile concerts over the spring and summer. Recent headliners have included Taylor Swift, Luis Miguel and the Colombian star Karol G.

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Deafening concerts have turned Madrid stadium into ‘torture-drome’, say residents

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People living next to Santiago Bernabéu venue say gigs – including those by Taylor Swift – are ruining their lives and are taking action

When Delphine de Pontevès opens the window of her first-floor flat in Madrid a little before 10pm on a Tuesday night, more spills into the living room than the unforgivingly hot night air.

The voices and shouts of the crowds below give way to cheers, then to bass-heavy beats and music that will last until midnight and further stretch the patience of those who, like De Pontevès, live next door to the Santiago Bernabéu stadium.

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Campaigners in Spain call for more to be done about racism in football

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Real Madrid star Vinícius Júnior’s tearful comments prompt questions over why racist fans can still act with impunity

Antiracism campaigners in Spain have called on the country’s institutions to do more to crack down on racism in football, after Real Madrid winger Vinícius Júnior laid bare the personal toll exacted by years of racist insults.

Breaking down in tears as he spoke of the systematic barrage of abuse he had faced at more than 10 Spanish grounds, the Brazilian player told reporters on Monday that the situation had “gotten worse” during his time on the pitch.

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Spanish police make arrests over ‘hate crimes’ targeting Vinícius Júnior

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Three detained after racist slurs directed at Real Madrid forward, with four more held over mannequin hanging from bridge

Spanish police have arrested three people in connection with the racist abuse suffered by Real Madrid’s Brazilian forward Vinícius Júnior during a match with Valencia on Sunday, and detained a further four suspects over an effigy of the player that was hung from a bridge in Madrid four months ago.

In a brief statement on Tuesday morning, the Policía Nacional said three young men had been arrested in Valencia over the “racist behaviour” that took place during the match at the city’s Mestalla stadium.

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Spanish prosecutors investigate racist football abuse against Vinícius Júnior

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Judicial sources say incident during Real Madrid’s match with Valencia is being treated as possible hate crime

Spanish prosecutors have opened an investigation over racist chants hurled at Real Madrid’s Brazilian forward Vinícius Júnior during a weekend match, as the head of Spain’s football federation admitted the country had a “problem” with racism.

The prosecutor’s office in the eastern city of Valencia, where the game took place, was investigating the incident as a possible “hate crime”, judicial sources said, after Luis Rubiales of the Royal Spanish Football Federation called for zero tolerance.

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Fury in France as Champions League final chaos tarnishes nation’s global image

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As elections loom, public turns against interior minister Gérald Darmanin after he blames Liverpool fans for Paris fiasco

When Paris stepped in to host the Champions League final, the biggest match in international football after the World Cup final, the French authorities saw a chance to show that the nation was the ideal place to hold global sporting events.

This weekend, those hopes appear to be dashed as French opinion polls show widespread disapproval of the chaos that ensued, amid growing criticism of politicians and the police.

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Champions League final chaos shows France in bad light, say opposition leaders

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Jean-Luc Mélenchon criticises ‘confrontational policing’ at Paris final, saying country seems ill-prepared for future events

French opposition politicians have criticised the government over policing at the Champions League final in Paris on Saturday night, saying the chaotic scenes showed a poor image of France.

Jean-Luc Mélenchon, the radical left leader, whose left alliance is seeking to win seats in forthcoming parliament elections, said the “lamentable” and “worrying” scenes suggested France and its security services were not prepared for sports events such as next year’s Rugby World Cup or the 2024 Paris Olympics.

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Liverpool fans liken ‘terrifying’ treatment in Paris to Hillsborough

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Witnesses say they feared for their lives as French police fired teargas into the crowds ahead of Champions League final

Families affected by the Hillsborough disaster have compared the “terrifying” treatment of Liverpool fans at the Champions League final to the crush that led to the deaths of 97 supporters in 1989.

Witnesses described seeing children “trembling with fear”, and adults scared for their lives, as French police fired teargas into crowds outside the Stade de France in Paris on Saturday night.

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Paris Saint-Germain v Real Madrid: Champions League last 16 – live!

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3 min: Real pass it around the back awhile. It’s a period of sterile possession that encourages plenty of pantomime whistling from the home crowd.

1 min: The first roar of the evening as Mbappe turns gracefully into space and immediately sprays a pass wide right to Di Maria. The move fizzles out but what an early statement of intent by Mbappe.

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Dozens hurt as Catalonia independence protesters clash with police at Barcelona match

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  • Violence erupted as Barcelona played Real Madrid in La Liga
  • First incident since October jailing of Catalan separatist leaders

Masked protesters set bins on fire and threw rocks and glass bottles at police who responded with foam bullets in a street near Camp Nou stadium as Barcelona and Real Madrid faced off Wednesday in the first clásico of the season.

Forty-six people were lightly injured in the clashes, including eight who needed to be taken to hospital for extra care, local emergency services said. Five people were arrested, a police spokesman said.

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