Bernabeu residents complain to Real Madrid over concerts accepted | Madrid News

The judge has accepted the complaint filed by the Association of Neighbours Affected by the Bernabéu against Real Madrid for the macro shows that the stadium has hosted since May. The neighbours accuse the white club of committing an environmental crime due to the excessive noise and vibrations caused by the concerts. This means that the justice system has seen possible signs of a crime in the documentation provided by the association and is starting to investigate the case. The magistrate of the Investigative Court No. 54 has rejected the complaint against the Madrid City Council, Mayor José Luis Martínez-Almeida and the delegate of the government’s Urban Planning, Environment and Mobility Department, Borja Carabante. The association wants them to be investigated for environmental violations. The complainants have said they will appeal the decision.

According to the order, to which EL PAÍS had access, the judge summons the sole administrator of the Real Madrid Estadio SL, José Ángel Sánchez Perianes, and a representative of this organization to testify in October. The magistrate also asks the municipal police for all the records of measurements taken between April 26 and July 15, 2024, during which the stadium hosted a dozen macro shows, from a Taylor Swift concert to four proposed by the singer Karol G, including Dukie or Luis Miguel, among others. In the document, he also asks the police to state the exact number of complaints received due to excessive noise coming from the Bernabéu.

Neighbourhood associations have already won a victory in court when a Madrid court paralysed the work on the Bernabéu car park and tunnel because it considered that the city council’s agreement with Real Madrid only benefited the white club and was detrimental to the environment. In the ruling, the judge pointed out that residents had not been given sufficient information about the nature and scope of the works, that they were of no public benefit and that the council had ignored municipal technical reports that warned that the works were incompatible with the Modern Approach to Urban Planning. “The defendant’s administration has failed to demonstrate in this procedure that the construction of two car parks, one of which has a direct connection with the Bernabéu stadium car park, is in the public and general interest in accordance with the Urban Planning Act and specifically the Special Plan,” the ruling of the Court of Contentious Administrative Cases No. 30 states.

In a complaint filed by the neighbours, they claim that in March 2019, the city council granted Real Madrid a building licence that “does not propose the use of the stadium for any purpose other than hosting football matches”. The association notes that “for the celebration of other events, such as concerts, the appropriate permit would be required on a case-by-case basis”. The neighbours provide a list of all the concerts that have taken place at the stadium to date and claim that the owner of the premises “has not carried out any studies to prevent noise from occurring during the celebration of events”. The complaint claims that the noise is “unbearable” and is supported by reports from acoustic experts.

This is the latest episode in the judicial, social and information war that the residents of the Bernabéu have declared against the white club and the city council over the new leisure model proposed by Real Madrid in the area. Residents of the area complain of deafening noise on concert and rehearsal days, crowds of people blocking traffic on show days, the dirt they create and the lack of security. This week, Almeida tried to calm the situation and bring the positions closer together by announcing measures such as holding concerts or increasing cleaning.

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