Ferran Soto, chairman of the Spanish Referees’ Committee, addressed the ongoing controversy over Real Madrid’s official channel criticising refereeing and outlined the current state of communication between his committee and the club’s management.
Asked whether measures had been taken to protect referees from the channel’s attacks, Soto replied during an interview with Spanish radio station Cadena SER: “Actually, I don’t watch Real Madrid TV.”
Pressed on the videos’ continued circulation, he added, “I believe the intensity has dropped sharply.”
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Asked whether the drop is linked to the new rule that keeps referees’ identities under wraps until a few hours before kick-off, Soto added: “That’s simple; they can record 20 videos in advance, and it doesn’t cost much. The intensity has clearly gone down.”
On his relationship with Real Madrid and president Florentino Pérez, he added: “The relationship is good… I don’t usually speak to Florentino; I deal more with Butragueño.”
He also warned that the committee would act swiftly if any footage revealed criminal behaviour, yet he insisted that criticism “comes from various media outlets and is not limited to a single channel”.