In the coming months, Real Madrid will conclude the ambitious renovation of Santiago Bernabéu. The work began in 2019 and despite many obstacles, the investment is heading towards a successful completion. According to the club, the cost of this reconstruction is slightly over one billion €. Will it stay within this budget?

Huge loans

Economist Héctor Mohedano described all the expenses associated with the Bernabéu reconstruction on the social media platform X and on his YouTubechannel. According to his calculations, the total cost will be close to 2 billion €.

The first loan of 575 million € at a fixed interest rate of 2.5% for 30 years was finalized in April 2019. Including accrued interest, this loan—the largest ever sought by the entity in its history—would amount to a total of 885 million €. The annual fee for this first mortgage loan installment is 29.5 million €.

In December 2021, Real Madrid secured a second loan of 225 million € to finance the greenhouse where the grass is cultivated. Simultaneously, the terms of the previous loan were changed—now at 1.53% interest for 27 years, totaling 283.5 million €. In this case, the annual fee remained at 10.5 million €. Additionally, the Royals obtained financing of 360 million € from the company Legends in exchange for 30% of the revenues generated by Santiago Bernabéu over the next 20 years from all non-football events.

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Aware that the venue will become a giant, Real approved a third and final loan in November 2023 to equip the Madrid coliseum with a 360-degree video scoreboard, as well as improvements in acoustics, lighting, audiovisual screens, and commercial spaces. The club believes this loan will be repaid solely through advertising sales.

Will the stadium 'pay for itself' in less than 10 years?

The initially estimated investment cost increased by around 575 million €, mainly due to the pandemic and the war in Ukraine. However, it should be noted that this amount also increased due to several innovations introduced in the original project, such as the retractable pitch under the stands.

In summary, the total expenditure on renovating the Estadio Santiago Bernabéu, including interest, will amount to 1,948.5 billion € at an average interest rate of 3.2%. However, experts are confident that in less than a decade, the new Santiago Bernabéu will be more than paid off.

Real Madrid studied business models of various highly valued sports entities, such as the Dallas Cowboys, and copied a facility model that, through concerts, business events, and various fairs, is able to offset the expensive bill with annual earnings of 56 million €. Before the renovation, Real Madrid only achieved this amount through ticket sales for football matches. Currently, thanks to modernization, earning potential has incredibly increased.

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