Featured image credit: Bradley Rial
Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez is looking to strike a deal with technology giant Apple that would give more fans the chance to sample the redeveloped Estadio Santiago Bernabéu.
Pérez was speaking at the weekend during Real Madrid’s general assembly meeting, where various topics were on the agenda. He expressed his desire to create an ‘estadio infinito’ project with Apple, which would allow fans from around the world to experience a match at the Bernabéu through the company’s Vision Pro headsets.
Pérez has said that talks have taken place between the club and Apple, but it is unclear exactly how such a partnership would work given LaLiga’s media rights model.
“Everyone wants to come to the Santiago Bernabéu and that’s why we’re negotiating with Apple about being able to put on glasses and watch the game as if you were in the stadium, it would be the infinite Santiago Bernabéu,” Pérez said, according to Marca.
Real Madrid is also exploring ways to combat the reselling of season tickets for individual matches at the Bernabéu, which is nearing the conclusion of a wide-ranging redevelopment project. Pérez said that digitalisation will help the club in its endeavors.
Back in July, Real Madrid claimed an operating income landmark of €1.073bn (£866m/$1.087bn) for the 2023-24 financial year, highlighting the huge rise in revenue generated by the Bernabéu.
The operating income represented a 27% rise on the previous year’s figure of €843m, with the club stating that breaking the one-billion-euro mark represented an “unprecedented figure for any football club”.
The Bernabéu has been fitted with a new retractable roof, with the exterior of the stadium also undergoing a complete revamp. Last week, F3 Architects hailed the impact of Real Madrid’s new flagship megastore it helped deliver as part of the redevelopment project.
The project has allowed the stadium to host more music concerts. Last month, Real Madrid and Madrid City Council strenuously denied claims that the club was operating the stadium without a valid licence, with both parties speaking out against “categorically false information” presented by the Asociación Vecinal de Perjudicados por el Bernabéu (Neighbourhood Association of People Affected by the Bernabéu) in Spanish media reports.
Speaking at the weekend, Pérez reiterated the club’s stance, stating: “It is inconceivable that we have to read in some toxic digital media that the Bernabéu does not even have a licence to hold football matches.
“Organising concerts is not a particularly lucrative activity for the club. We simply rent out the stadium and I want you to know that the income from this concept would be around 1% of our annual budget.”
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