Supreme Court Rules in Favor of Real Madrid in TV Rights Dispute with LaLiga

The Supreme Court (TS) has undermined LaLiga by annulling a significant segment of its statutes governing audiovisual rights distribution for the 2015/2016 season, as reported by Europa Press.

This ruling follows a partial acceptance of an appeal lodged by Real Madrid, which contended that the regulation was harmful and in violation of the Royal Decree-law relevant to the commercialization of these rights.

The Contentious-Administrative Chamber of the Supreme Court specifically decided to annul the Second Additional Provision of the statutes. This provision outlined the distribution mechanism for television revenue, which Real Madrid argued deviated from the transitional structure specified in Royal Decree-law 5/2015.

The Supreme Court justices determined that the appellant correctly pointed out LaLiga’s regulation lacked legitimation. They emphasized that the pertinent issue is not whether the measure economically favored or disadvantaged Real Madrid, but that the provision is deemed “unlawful” as it lacks “legal coverage”, given that the Royal Decree-law did not permit LaLiga to establish such regulations for the 2015/2016 season.

This ruling sets a significant precedent, contradicting the earlier stance of the National Court. The Supreme Court clarifies that the Higher Sports Council (CSD)'s approval of LaLiga's statutory modification constitutes an administrative act subject to Administrative Law, thus making it fully reviewable by contentious-administrative jurisdiction.

Real Madrid’s legal triumph against LaLiga not only revokes a fundamental aspect of economic distribution for the 2015/2016 season but also strengthens the authority of the contentious-administrative jurisdiction over CSD decisions concerning professional league statutes.

This article was translated into English by Artificial Intelligence. You can read the original version in 🇪🇸 here.

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