Why did Real Madrid demanded new officials for Copa del Rey final? Match referees draw Los Blancos attacks

On the eve of the Copa del Rey final, Real Madrid are set to cancel their open training, press conference and club dinner according to Marca. This is in response to the referees, Ricardo de Burgos Bengoetxea and Pablo Gonzalez Fuertes, not being changed for the final which will take place Saturday in Sevilla. Real Madrid feels that statements by Gonzalez Fuertes should disqualify him from being able to oversee the final.

Real Madrid asked for a referee change but it was denied by the Royal Spanish Football Federation. During a press conference in the lead-up to the final, the two spoke out about the abuse that he has received for overseeing the match, including from Real Madrid's own TV network, "Real Madrid TV," with Gonzalez Fuertes referencing the TV network.

"I'm going to talk about those videos... More than what's being said, it's the consequences of what's being said. We're seeing anonymous people on social media insulting and threatening without any control. Official club social media managers are continually attacking our community, in addition to player actions and statements that give rise to the belief that we're not being honest in our decisions. The consequences are that when you talk about theft and bad language, the frustration you generate in the fans is paid for by the little boy or girl who grabs a whistle and has to officiate a child's game. It's the consequence of putting the target on a teammate's head. It's good and healthy for everyone to return to a healthier style of football," Gonzalez Fuertes said.

Real Madrid has had numerous issues with refereeing this season, releasing an open letter in February claiming that Spanish refereeing is rigged and completely discredited.

What's Real Madrid saying?

Los Blancos have released an official statement ahead the match in which they double down requesting that the referee is changed ahead of the match.

"Real Madrid CF considers the public statements made today by the referees designated for the Copa del Rey Final, scheduled to be held tomorrow, April 26, 2025, to be unacceptable. These protests, which have surprisingly focused attention on videos from a media outlet protected by freedom of expression, such as Real Madrid TV, deliberately carried out 24 hours earlier against one of the final's participants, demonstrate, once again, the clear and manifest animosity and hostility of these referees toward Real Madrid," Real Madrid said in a statement.

"Even more surprising statements, in a threatening tone, alluding to the referees' unity, were used to announce alleged measures or actions that fall far short of the principles of fairness, objectivity, and impartiality that should prevail just hours before a football event that captures the attention of hundreds of millions of people around the world. Given the seriousness of what happened, Real Madrid hopes that those responsible for the RFEF and the refereeing body will act accordingly, adopting the necessary measures to defend the prestige of the institutions they represent."

Real Madrid believes that Gonzalez Fuertes can't make impartial decisions after his statements, and that it should lead to a change in officiating. During a roller coaster season, these issues have cropped up more than once causing for Madrid to make complaints.

Previous issues

During a match against Espanyol in February, Real Madrid felt that they were hurt by refereeing errors, leading to a 1-0 loss. This is what led to the open letter to La Liga because a foul on Kylian Mbappe only garnered a yellow card instead of a red. The foul did go to VAR review with the officiating crew deciding that a yellow was enough. Romero ended up scoring the winning goal in the match, setting back Los Blancos in a tight La Liga race.

This was the crux of Real Madrid and Real Madrid TV complaining about unfair treatment from referees and it has become a theme in dissecting every decision of the season, including Jude Bellingham's red card for dissent while facing Osasuna. This has now come to a head ahead of the Copa del Rey final, leaving the Spanish Federation with quite a decision to make.

What's next

While Real Madrid wants the referees to be changed, at the moment, there is no plan for that. It's unknown if Real Madrid will take further action and try to protest playing in the Copa del Rey final,l but it is clear that any decision made will be met with scrutiny during the match. RFEF has already rejected Real Madrid's initial request for the referee to be change,d but with their statement above, Los Blancos are far from done with this issue.