The New Bernabéu envisioned by Florentino Pérez is the pride of Madridism, but it was born with an original sin: its limited capacity.
Meanwhile, the white president has already been warned that Madrid might miss out on the 2020 World Cup final, as planned, precisely because of the Bernabéu's capacity.
80,000 Seats Are Not Enough
Florentino did not consider it necessary to increase the Bernabéu's capacity beyond where it stands: 80,000 seats.
Meanwhile, the white president has already been told that the Bernabéu is not competitive. Neither with the 106,000 seats that Camp Nou will have nor with the 115,000 of the stadium being built in Casablanca.
Now the goal is to expand the capacity as much as possible. Relevo talks about 5,000 more seats, which would leave the white coliseum's capacity at 85,000 seats.
Real Madrid is seeking solutions. It is not easy because below, as Barça did with Núñez, it is not simple to gain seating due to the network of mechanisms that coexist under the field to make it retractable.
And above, it is not easy either because the roof is completed, and operating there would mean having to lift it again.
Construction Will Return to Bernabéu
Florentino is now engaged in the task of obtaining those 5,000 seats to meet FIFA's requirements, which seems to favor Camp Nou and Casablanca.
What seems certain is that construction will return to Bernabéu. The best stadium in the world must adapt to FIFA's needs. Despite decades ago accommodating up to 120,000 spectators, when most of the seats were standing.
The current official capacity is 81,044 spectators, 25,000 less than Camp Nou. Relevo recalls that, in an assembly, Florentino informed the members:
"At Bernabéu we have authorized 80,000 spectators, 1,000 up or 1,000 down. If we had more, the Law required us to have other emergency exits and the like. So we left it at 80,000."
Now he regrets it because the 2030 World Cup final is in jeopardy, something the city of Madrid already counts on. But the truth is that the data proves him right. The highest attendance came in the clásico against Barcelona: 78,192 spectators.
City brought 78,082 spectators and Atlético, in LaLiga, 77,023. The new Bernabéu has lost capacity compared to the previous one with the provision of spaces for VIP areas.