Real Madrid are preparing to submit a report to FIFA, football’s world governing body, to detail “what is happening in Spanish football with regard to refereeing.”
An announcement on Real Madrid TV, the club’s official media channel, confirmed on Saturday — following their 2-1 victory at Real Sociedad — that the dossier would reference incidents in Spanish football both this season and last.
“Real Madrid is preparing a report with everything that has happened in these first four rounds of La Liga and what happened last season,” said the announcement.
“A dossier, that report, which is going to be submitted to FIFA so that they take good note of what is happening in Spanish football with regard to refereeing.”
The Athletic have contacted FIFA for comment.
Madrid’s announcement came following Madrid’s 2-1 victory at Real Sociedad on Saturday, when defender Dean Huijsen was shown a direct red card in the 32nd minute for pulling down opponent Mikel Oyarzabal, who was through on goal.
Xabi Alonso said after the game that he thought it should have been a yellow card as he believed Huijsen’s team-mate, Eder Militao, was covering the run.
Madrid president Florentino Perez has long been critical of what many at the Bernabeu view as refereeing bias against their side.
Last season, there was a flurry of club statements and media barbs exchanged between Madrid on the one side and the Spanish Federation (RFEF) and La Liga on the other.
Madrid have won all four of their La Liga matches to date this term, but their games have not been without controversy.
Their 1-0 home win over Osasuna was decided by a Kylian Mbappe penalty, with their opponents finishing the game with 10 players after Abel Bretones was shown a straight red card.
Alonso’s side defeated Real Mallorca 2-1 but they had three goals ruled out by VAR in the game; two from Mbappe and one from Guler.
They have also defeated newly-promoted Real Oviedo 3-0.
In February last season, Madrid filed a formal complaint to the Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) asking for the “immediate submission of VAR audio” related to two decisions in their 1-0 defeat by Espanyol.
The complaint follows referee Alejandro Muniz Ruiz’s decision to show Espanyol defender Carlos Romero a yellow card for a 60th-minute challenge on Mbappe as well as a disallowed goal by Vinicius Junior in the 21st minute after a foul by the France forward. Romero went on to score the game’s only goal in the 85th minute.
Ahead of last season’s Copa del Rey final between Madrid and Barcelona, match referee Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea cried during his pre-match press conference as he detailed the impact criticism from Real Madrid’s in-house television channel and other outlets has had on him and his family.
Videos pointing out alleged biases against Madrid by match officials have become regular features of Real Madrid TV ahead of big games. Two days ahead of that match, the channel published a video compilation of alleged mistakes made by De Burgos Bengoetxea during previous Madrid matches.
Madrid defender Antonio Rudiger was subsequently handed a six-match ban for throwing an object at referee Bengoetxea during his side’s 3-2 final loss.
(Florencia Tan Jun/Getty Images)
