These are the seven LaLiga titles Florentino Pérez says were “stolen” from Real Madrid

When Florentino Pérez declared Tuesday in a press conference that Real Madrid would be submitting a wide-ranging report to UEFA to denounce alleged refereeing corruption tied to Barcelona’s €8.4m in payments to referees’ chief José María Enríquez Negreira over 17 years, he added a line that echoed loudly across Spain’s soccer divide: “I’ve won seven Champions Leagues and only seven LaLiga titles. It could have been 14, but they were stolen from me.” Madrid head coach Álvaro Arbeloa, when asked whether he agreed with Pérez, didn’t hesitate: “Yes, of course. We all know what has happened for more than 20 years.” Those seven LaLiga campaigns referenced by both the club president and the Madrid coach - seasons in which Los Blancos lost the title by narrow margins ranging from one to four points - have been compiled and documented by the club. Here is a detailed look at each of them.

LaLiga 2004/05

Barcelona were crowned champions with 84 points, just four ahead of Real Madrid. Barça had not won the league in five years (since 1999), while Madrid signed Ballon d’Or winner Michael Owen in a bid to reclaim the title lost the previous season to Rafa Benítez’s Valencia. For Barça president Joan Laporta, the stakes were enormous: the Blaugrana had already suffered a shocking Copa del Rey elimination at the hands of lower-division Gramanet and a Champions League exit against José Mourinho’s Chelsea.

This was also the first season following Ángel María Villar’s re-election as Spanish FA president, after Laporta shifted his support on the eve of voting - breaking with LaLiga clubs that had backed rival candidate Gerardo González. Within Madrid there is a belief that several refereeing decisions that season tilted in Barça’s favor as a form of “reward” for that political alignment.

Barcelona were awarded 10 penalties (double Madrid’s total), received just two red cards (Madrid had five), and their opponents saw six red cards - twice as many as those shown to Madrid’s opponents. Barça players accumulated 78 yellow cards (Madrid had 97), while their opponents were booked 104 times compared to just 81 for Madrid’s rivals.

LaLiga 2009/10

This was Manuel Pellegrini’s season on the Madrid bench. Despite setting a then-club record of 96 points, Madrid could not overhaul Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona, who finished with 99. Pérez had returned to the presidency in spectacular fashion, bringing in Cristiano Ronaldo, Karim Benzema, Kaká and Xabi Alonso. Pellegrini’s campaign was dented by the infamous Copa defeat to minnows Alcorcón and a Champions League elimination at the hands of Lyon, leading Madrid to go all-in on the league. However, grievances emerged over refereeing decisions in slip-ups at El Sadar (0-0), San Mamés (0-1), and the Sánchez-Pizjuán (0-1). Those dropped points ultimately proved decisive.

LaLiga 2010/11

José Mourinho’s first league season in charge saw Madrid rack up 92 points, yet Barcelona again prevailed with 96. Cristiano Ronaldo’s 40 goals outpaced Lionel Messi’s 31, but it wasn’t enough to secure the title.

Mourinho was outspoken about disciplinary disparities: Barcelona received 74 yellow cards compared to Madrid’s 98, while the red card count was even more striking - seven for Madrid and just two for Barça. At one point, Mourinho famously presented a list of what he called “the 13 errors of [referee Carlos] Clos Gómez”. Madrid also pointed to refereeing in scoreless draws at Almería and Deportivo La Coruña, as well as the decisive Clásico at the Bernabéu in April 2011, which saw Raúl Albiol sent off.

LaLiga 2014/15

This was Madrid’s first league campaign after winning their 10th European title in Lisbon, sealed by Sergio Ramos’s dramatic 93rd-minute equalizer against Atlético Madrid. Ronaldo delivered an extraordinary season with 48 goals, but Madrid still fell short as Barcelona claimed LaLiga by just two points (94 to 92). Within the club, frustration centered on two derby defeats against Atlético.

LaLiga 2015/16

Zinedine Zidane took over in January, replacing Benítez, and guided Madrid through a remarkable second half of the campaign. They finished with 90 points - just one behind Barcelona’s 91. Madrid see penalties as the defining issue. Barça were awarded 19 over the season, while Madrid received just nine - less than half. At the other end, Barça were penalized with only one spot-kick in 38 matches, compared to four conceded by Madrid. “There’s nothing more to add,” is how the club sums up that title race.

LaLiga 2020/21

The second pandemic-season title race was marked by a decisive penalty awarded against Éder Militão against Sevilla at Valdebebas, just moments after referee José María Sánchez Martínez had initially given a spot-kick to Madrid for a foul on Benzema before reversing course. That incident came on the heels of the Madrid derby at the Estadio Metropolitano, where a clear handball by Felipe went unpunished despite a VAR alert.

LaLiga 2024/25

Carlo Ancelotti watched in frustration as Madrid’s seven-point lead over Barcelona evaporated amid what the club considers a trio of decisive refereeing performances. First came the match at Cornellà against Espanyol, highlighted by a dangerous challenge from Carlos Romero on Kylian Mbappé that went unpunished with a red card. Then the derby, where a penalty was awarded against Aurélien Tchouaméni on Samu Lino following a VAR intervention by Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea. Finally, a controversial outing in Pamplona under referee José Luis Munuera Montero, featuring three denied penalty appeals and a red card for Jude Bellingham.

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