Scandal closed. Real Madrid president wins lawsuit against Spanish outlet

The Supreme Court of Spain has definitively upheld the verdict in the case against El Confidencial and its editor-in-chief Ignacio Cardero. The journalists were found guilty of unlawfully infringing upon the honor of Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez.

The initial court ruling from October 6, 2022, which was upheld by the provincial court, determined that the newspaper’s publications in July 2021 violated Pérez’s rights. At the time, the outlet had released a series of recordings of his private conversations, made without his consent.

The court ordered the publication and its editor-in-chief to:

• publish the text of the ruling in all major Spanish media outlets—As, Marca, El Confidencial, El País, and El Mundo—on the central pages of the newspapers, using the same font and size as other materials on the page;
• cease the distribution of the audio recordings in any form;

• pay symbolic damages of 1 euro and cover all legal costs.

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The judge emphasized that the content of the materials was aimed at undermining the public image of the Real Madrid president rather than informing readers. This was deemed a deliberate act of discreditation, which cannot be justified by appeals to freedom of expression or a duty to inform the public.