Source:REUTERS/Vincent West
[Saba Sports News] According to Spanish media reports, Luis Manuel Rubiales Béjar, the former president of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), consistently emphasized his support for women’s football during his term. However, a recent ruling by the 16th Commercial Court of Madrid has exposed the abuse of market dominance by the RFEF under his leadership. The ruling clearly states that the RFEF, led by Rubiales, engaged in “abuse of dominant position” and ordered it to pay €100,000 in compensation plus corresponding interest to Real Zaragoza Women’s Football Club. In the judgment, the judge described such actions as “pure retaliation,” taking advantage of its monopoly position in competition management and audio-visual rights sales. The court found that the RFEF applied discriminatory treatment to Zaragoza between the 2019–20 and 2022–23 seasons, severely affecting the club’s financial stability.
The editor believes that this is an illegal act without economic justification, carried out solely by virtue of its market dominance. Furthermore, the judgment mentions that Real Zaragoza Women’s Club was not the only one affected; around 20 clubs that were part of the Women’s Football Clubs Association at the time suffered similar harm, with the total amount reaching 966,681 euros.