Perez pictured with Karim Benzema in 2022, the last time a Real Madrid player won the Ballon d'Or.

Last year, the football world was shocked when Real Madrid abruptly announced its withdrawal from the Ballon d'Or gala at the last minute, despite 50 members being ready to travel. At the time, *France Football* hadn't revealed the winner, but Real Madrid knew none of its 7 nominated players, including Vinicius Junior and Jude Bellingham – who finished second and third – would win, leading to the boycott.

Carlo Ancelotti was left in a difficult position, unable to accept the Johan Cruyff Trophy for best men's coach of 2024, and no Real Madrid representative was present to receive the Club of the Year award. Ancelotti only received the award last week. His former club didn't even acknowledge the two awards.

This year, Real Madrid's men's players were again absent from the Paris event, despite Vinicius, Bellingham, and Kylian Mbappe being nominated for the main award. Goalkeeper Thibaut Courtois had a chance to win the Yashin Trophy, while 20-year-old center-back Dean Huijsen was nominated for the Kopa Trophy.

While every top European club sent representatives to the gala at the Chatelet Theater in Paris, regardless of their members' chances of winning, for Real Madrid, the Ballon d'Or seems to no longer exist. The award isn't mentioned on any of the club's official media channels. Over 20 anonymous current and former Santiago Bernabeu employees contacted by *The Athletic* confirmed that the decision could only have come from Perez.

During his two presidential terms (2000-2006 and 2009-present), the 78-year-old businessman has centralized power at Real Madrid to the extent that every final decision rests with him. Perez controls all matters relating to football, media, business, and every department.

However, this stance creates difficulties for staff responsible for promoting the club's image and working with sponsors and commercial partners. The Ballon d'Or event helps elevate the image and expand the fan base. The sudden boycott last year was seen by many within Real Madrid as a serious communications misstep, particularly in its timing and delivery.

Vinicius finishing second in the 2024 race led Real Madrid to turn its back on the Ballon d'Or.

Outsiders consider this another example of the "siege mentality" during Perez's reign. Spain has long been divided between those who love and those who hate Real Madrid. Perez genuinely believes half of the Iberian Peninsula are Real Madrid fans, and the other half are against them.

UEFA and its President, Aleksander Ceferin, are also on the "anti-Real Madrid" list after the Perez-initiated Super League project quickly collapsed in 4/2021. Perez believes UEFA interfered with the decision not to award the 2024 Ballon d'Or to a Real Madrid player, punishing the club's continued pursuit of the Super League, despite the award being decided by the votes of 100 independent journalists worldwide.

Real Madrid's "us against the world" mentality can be seen in the harsh and hostile attitude of Real Madrid TV (RMTV). The club's television channel frequently attacks perceived "enemies" of Real Madrid, such as Spanish referees or Barcelona President Joan Laporta. RMTV's content isn't directly dictated by Perez or the board, but all employees know the editorial line they must follow. A former Real Madrid employee said RMTV is crucial to Perez "for political messaging reasons".

Perez, who wanted to be a politician before achieving great success in business, understands the significance of controlling information. He pushed for changes to the club's statutes, creating almost insurmountable barriers for potential opponents in presidential elections. This helps maintain support for the Super League project and the power struggle with La Liga President Javier Tebas.

The wave of indignation also distracts fans during periods of poor performance. Last year's Ballon d'Or boycott came just hours after Real Madrid lost 0-4 to Barcelona at the Bernabeu. Real Madrid's harshest criticism of referees erupted in early 2025, when the team struggled through a trophyless season.

"We are against everyone and everything," an RMTV commentator once declared on air after last year's Copa del Rey final against Barcelona. Real Madrid's management then revealed they had considered boycotting the match, after referees expressed outrage over videos accusing them of bias broadcast on RMTV before the game.

When the 2025 Ballon d'Or nominations were announced in early August, Real Madrid didn't even mention the news on its website or social media.

In the Real Madrid women's team, Scottish star Caroline Weir was nominated for the Women's Ballon d'Or and is expected to attend alone, though her club hasn't publicly acknowledged this personal achievement. Another Real Madrid goalkeeper, Linda Caicedo, nominated for the Kopa Trophy, was also not mentioned by Real Madrid.

Perez's view of *France Football* and UEFA, the co-organizers of the gala, remains unchanged. Real Madrid's male players have long accepted they won't attend the awards ceremony, even though being nominated is a great honor, with global exposure and recognition, as in the case of goalkeeper Andriy Lunin – who finished third for the Yashin Trophy last year.

Perez has led Real Madrid through two periods, 2000-2006 and 2009 to the present, helping the club win 65 titles, including 37 in football and 28 in basketball. Most notable among these are seven Champions League titles and three Euro League titles.

Paradoxically, the Ballon d'Or once played a significant role in Perez's project at Real Madrid. Many "galactico" signings during his first presidential term were former winners, including Luis Figo, Zinedine Zidane, Michael Owen, and Ronaldo. In his second term, Real Madrid openly boasted when Cristiano Ronaldo, Luka Modric, and Karim Benzema won the award. In 2017, while attending the awards ceremony, Perez joked on Cadena Ser radio, "They should also award a Ballon d'Or for the best president." That humor is now gone.

While the relationship between Perez, Real Madrid, and the Ballon d'Or has deteriorated, this hasn't actually affected the club's on-field performance or financial balance sheet. Real Madrid still won 37 titles in 22 full seasons under Perez's two terms, and revenue reached nearly 1.4 billion USD in the 2024-2025 season, the highest in world football.

However, in some ways, the losers are the players, coaches, staff, and everyone who has to live and work in a tense and bewildered environment. A club like Real Madrid cannot constantly confront everyone, from La Liga and UEFA to *France Football*.

Compiled by Hoang Thong