Tennis legend Rafael Nadal joins Real Madrid board

Real Madrid have added Rafael Nadal to their board of directors.

The tennis star's appointment was agreed at a club board meeting on Wednesday. The board will now ask the general assembly of delegate members to ratify Nadal as a new member of the board.

Nadal retired from tennis in 2024 after a career that brought him 22 grand slam singles titles. Fourteen of those came at the French Open, a record at the tournament.

A club statement described Nadal as “one of the greatest legends in the history of sport and one of the most admired and recognised Spanish athletes in the world”.

The statement added: “For Real Madrid and for all Madridismo it is a great pride that a figure of his sporting and human dimension, a benchmark in Spanish and world sport, becomes part of our board of directors and contributes, from this responsibility, to the present and future of our club.”

Real's statement continued: "With his extraordinary track record, with 92 individual titles, including 22 grand slams, two Olympic gold medals, five Davis Cups with Spain and number one in the world ranking, Rafael Nadal has starred in a legendary sporting career.

"But his figure represents much more than his successes: his talent, his spirit of permanent improvement, his capacity for sacrifice, his competitiveness, his humility, his respect for rivals and his team-mates, and his commitment to solidarity make him an example on and off the courts.

“All these values are part of Real Madrid’s identity and Rafael Nadal has represented and defended them throughout his sporting life, becoming a reference for millions of people around the world.”

Nadal has spoken in previous interviews about his love of Real Madrid since childhood. That affection has persisted despite his uncle Miguel Angel Nadal having played for their bitter rivals Barcelona.

He has held honorary membership of Real for years and has been a regular at matches at the Bernabeu. Nadal was a guest of honour at the 2022 Champions League final in Paris, when Real won their 14th Champions League title.

Responding to the appointment, Nadal wrote on X: "I want to thank President Florentino Pérez and the board for proposing that I join the board of directors of @realmadrid.

“I have accepted this proposal with great excitement, a desire to learn, and a willingness to contribute everything I can.”