When Isabel Díaz Ayuso takes the field this Sunday on the Bernabéu field, her presence at the NFL match is doubly justified: as president of the region and as leader of the institution that sponsored the match with 1.5 million euros. The regional executive has not spent such a large sum on a sporting event since the start of the legislature in June 2023. Since then, according to the recruitment portal, more than seven million have been invested in sponsorships of this type. Madrid has financed truck races, athletics competitions, paddle tennis tournaments, bodybuilder competitions, a stage of the Vuelta a España, tests of emerging disciplines such as Hyrox or Pickleball and even the Laureus awards gala. Ayuso was not seen on all those occasions. But while the executive claims that his bet helps put the region on the map, generating 556 million in sports tourism in 2023 alone, as minority specialties remain, this investment of public money also has a secondary effect: promoting the image of the president.
“Ayuso sells a false image of Madrid’s modernity while the city has collapsed, the metro doesn’t work and life is more difficult and more expensive every day,” they argue in Más Madrid. “Of course we are happy that Real Madrid’s image is thriving, the problem is the big one events of Ayuso they don’t think about those who live here,” they continue. “It’s not even about creating a Madrid for tourists: tourists who visit a city don’t want a papier-mâché environment, a theme park without life and without neighbours,” they add. “While Madrid is emptied of families, life becomes impoverished and services work worse, fireworks are attempted to cover it all up and that’s what the PP is focusing on.”
This is what the PSOE underlines: “Ayuso does not deal with the problems of the people of Madrid, she seems more like a representative of the events in Miami”.
The Community of Madrid closed 2024 with a total of 8.8 million international tourists (12.45% more than the previous year) for a total expenditure of approximately 16,117 million, which represents an increase of 20.9% compared to 2023, according to data published on Monday by the National Institute of Statistics (INE). The regional government claims that many of them arrived in the capital, attracted by the images of sporting and cultural events that reached them thanks to television or the Internet.
Thus, a Deloitte study for the Community of Madrid specifies that sports tourism generated approximately 556 million euros in 2023, of which 55% came from abroad.
In this way, with this commitment, sectors such as hospitality, catering and local trade are “promoted”, according to the consultancy company’s balance sheet. “A good part of this impact comes from international tourism, characterized by high average spending and a stay linked to major sporting events and experiences,” it is added.
And it concludes: “The Community also positions itself as the capital of sporting events, with the celebration of more than 400 traditional sporting events and 40 eSports tournaments throughout the year. This intense activity has expanded the leisure offer, strengthened Madrid’s external projection and stimulated the economy linked to entertainment, technology and cultural tourism.”
Perhaps for this reason, the Municipality of Madrid is also concentrating investments on events such as the NFL, which obviously included the presence of the mayor José Luis Martínez-Almeida.
Nothing is left to chance in the contracts that Real Madrid signs to sponsor sporting events. That of the NFL (1.5 million) includes promotional videos of the region, the presence of a representative of the Community at the presentation event and the payment of the trip of 10 influencers trips to discover the culture and gastronomy of Madrid. The Premier Pádel Comunidad de Madrid P1 (799,999.99 euros) requires that two representatives of the Community be present at the awards ceremony. And that of the Laureus Awards gala, known as the Oscars of sport (357,000 euros), specifies that «an interview must be carried out before the event with the representative of the Community of Madrid who will be designated during the nomination event, to offer an opportunity for controlled and quality content, where we can talk about these topics».
In addition to these three sponsorships, the Spanish climbing championship stands out (302,500.00 euros); those of the Madrid marathon (more than 260,000 euros), which elected the honorary marathon president in 2021; that of the European truck championship (242,000 euros); that of the motocross world championship (210,000.34 euros); that of the under-19 women’s basketball World Cup (181,500 euros); or that of the next women’s final of the UEFA Nations League (121,000.00), which will see Spain against Germany on 2 December.
Among the less expensive investments there are some that have given the president many returns. The most significant is the sponsorship of the last stage of the Vuelta a España. It cost just 45,000 euros. Ayuso took a photo on the way out. The stage was later canceled due to pro-Palestinian protests against the presence of an Israeli-sponsored team. And the resulting controversy fueled the baroness’ interventions for days, unequivocally in favor of the Israelis.
While waiting for the debut of Formula 1 in 2026 in the capital region, this is the best example that right now Madrid summarizes how easy it is to mix the emotions of sport with those of politics.
