Real Madrid unhappy with new President of Spanish refereeing –

On Wednesday the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF) announced Francisco Soto Balirac as the new President of the Referees Committee (CTA), replacing Luis Medina Cantalejo after four years. Yet Real Madrid, one of the most virile detractors of Medina, are not happy about it.

Soto took the position, and gave a press conference on Wednesday alongside RFEF President Rafael Louzan, who had selected him. He came as something of a left-field choice, as someone who was not involved as a top-level referee, or high up within the CTA. Until now, Soto has been a delegate for the Galician Football Federation, alongside his position as a high-level tax lawyer.

Real Madrid unhappy with Soto appointment

Real Madrid were just as surprised as the rest of Spain with the arrival of Soto, but Cadena Cope say that Los Blancos are not sufficiently impressed. They had hoped for a ‘radical change’, and say that while they do not know Soto well, they have their doubts about him, and are not convinced by his appointment.

The view from the Santiago Bernabeu is that Soto’s arrival is a superficial change, having been lobbying for a more independent CTA that is not linked to the RFEF or La Liga. It also frustrated Real Madrid that Soto did not directly address the Negreira case during his press conference, instead preferring to await the legal outcome.

Real Madrid TV case

In a vociferous effort to apply pressure on the refereeing body, Real Madrid TV ran a campaign of smear pieces on officials over the last two seasons, and could face disciplinary action, after La Liga took the club to the Court of Arbitration for Sport. Meanwhile in February, Real Madrid also sent an open letter to the RFEF, demanding that anyone who crossed paths with former Vice-President of the CTA Jose Maria Enriquez Negreira, or his son, Javier Negreira, be dismissed.