The refereeing controversy has returned, and this time with a protagonist no one can overlook: Real Madrid TV. The official channel of the white club has turned its editorial line into a true loudspeaker of pressure on referees.
Its programs, far from being merely informative, have transformed into a propaganda machine with a very specific goal: to influence referees' actions when they officiate Real Madrid. Then they talk about a "filthy league."
In just two matchdays, the constant discourse of "anti-Madridism" accusations seems to have had an effect. Both Hernández Hernández and De Burgos Bengoetxea, repeatedly singled out by the Madridist media environment, were especially cautious—if not fearful—in the last matchday.
Their decisions in both matches ended up benefiting Florentino Pérez's team.
Real Madrid TV's strategy
For months, Real Madrid TV has devoted hours of programming to criticizing referees. It doesn't matter if the mistakes were big or small, the tactic was clear: to turn certain referees into public enemies of Madridism. That strategy of media attrition has paid off.
The messages are repetitive, insistent, and calculated. Time and again, it is emphasized that certain referees harm Real Madrid by definition. This plants doubt and, most importantly, sows fear in the affected referee about making a mistake against the white club.
When the time comes to blow the whistle, the referee acts under pressure, aware that any mistake will be amplified by the propaganda machine with powerful platforms to generate public alarm.
Hernández Hernández singled out in Mallorca
One of the clearest examples occurred in the match between FC Barcelona and Levante. Hernández Hernández, considered "anti-Madridist" by Real Madrid TV's narrative, missed a clear penalty committed by Tchouaméni in a clásico the previous year.
Now, in Valencia, he called the same play the other way around because the beneficiary was Barça.
The conclusion at Camp Nou is clear: the referee took the field scared, influenced by the campaign against him. Determined not to fuel the victimist narrative of the Madridist press.
De Burgos Bengoetxea cautious in Oviedo
The case of De Burgos Bengoetxea in the Real Oviedo–Real Madrid match was similar. The referee, also attacked for months by the white channel, chose not to take risks in controversial actions.
He didn't disallow Mbappé's first goal, which was preceded by a clear foul by Tchouaméni. Then he turned a blind eye to a push in the box by Huijsen on Rondón.
The contrast is striking: a textbook foul that wasn't called, and a very similar action in another match used by the Madridist environment to demand Raphinha's expulsion.
A league start with controversy
With just two matchdays played, the feeling is that Real Madrid's pressure has already had an effect. First, there was a non-existent penalty in favor of the white team against Osasuna.
Afterwards, the victimist narrative in Mallorca, where even though Barça didn't benefit from any play, the idea of a "robbery" lingered in the air. That's what propaganda is for.
The media pressure and systematic targeting of referees has become Real Madrid's new formula for coming out stronger. For now, it's working for them with favorable refereeing decisions.