Real Madrid is battling to save a billion-euro project to make its stadium a world-class concert venue after being forced to halt music events that turned the football club into the world’s richest noisy neighbour.
The football club’s vision — backed by US investment firm Sixth Street — has been thrown into doubt by a battle with angry residents who have complained about intolerable noise from the concerts, which began this year as a €1.2bn stadium overhaul nears completion.
The stand-off is an embarrassing blow to Real Madrid, the world’s most valuable football club and a cornerstone of the Spanish establishment, which had billed the redesign of the Santiago Bernabéu stadium as its route to becoming a multi-use venue.