October 19: Real Madrid have reportedly appointed Bernd Reichart, the former CEO of A22 Sports and the public face of the European Super League, as head of the club’s commercial operation.
Reichart will be the business director, reporting directly to CEO José Ángel Sánchez and leading commercial and sponsorship activity.
Before joining A22 in July 2022, he spent nearly nine years at RTL Deutschland, joining in 2013 as CEO of the VOX channel and board member before becoming Group CEO from 2019 to 2021.
Before that, he was head of investor relations and then general manager of multichannel operations at Spain’s Atresmedia, owner of Antena 3 and LaSexta. In the early 2000s he worked in marketing and sales at Sportfive, which was recently renewed as an authorized VIP ticket partner of Real Madrid at the Bernabéu and distributor of Real Madrid TV.
Real Madrid were the strongest proponents of the Super League project which collapsed within days in April 2021, but Real Madrid only formally pulled out in February 2026, the last club to do so. His fiercest critic was LaLiga president Javier Tebas, who has long been embroiled in various public spats with the club.
Reichart takes over the sales of a business in good shape. In July, Real Madrid recorded revenue of €1.22 billion excluding player transfers for 2025-26, up 3.1% and over €1 billion for the third consecutive season. Stadium revenue increased by 11% and marketing revenue by 6%, “driven by the renewal of major sponsorship contracts and the addition of new sponsors.”
Since 2018-19, revenue has grown by 61%, with 93% of that growth coming from revenue directly managed by the club, the area Reichart will now oversee.
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