Real Madrid President Florentino Pérezgetty images
Real Madrid President Florentino Pérez, who is also president of construction firm ACS, estimated that the project to renovate the Santiago Bernabéu, whose budget is approximately €400M ($474M), "will be awarded to a construction company in early '19," according to the EFE. Pérez "announced ACS will not participate in the project." He said, "The projects are very complicated. We have done the urbanization project. Now we have the project of executing the renovations, which have been delayed" (EFE, 5/8). In Madrid, Fermín de la Calle wrote Real Madrid has a chance to win the Champions League for the third consecutive year, "which would be very beneficial in the various negotiations the club currently has open." The first negotiation and the "most important" that the club has open regards the renovations to the Santiago Bernabéu. Pérez "has combed the Persian Gulf" in search of a naming rights partner for the stadium, but has yet to find a partner for the initiative since the withdrawal of IPIC. To cover the cost of the renovations, Real Madrid will look for a medium- to short-term sponsorship, "and this is where the impact of a third consecutive Champions League title would have an influence." With a win over Liverpool on May 26, "the value of the club's sponsorship rights will soar, making it possible to secure financing in much less time." Real Madrid is also in negotiations with kit sponsor adidas (EL CONFIDENCIAL, 5/8).
