The events that have transpired at Real Madrid in the last few weeks have been nothing short of what you’d see on reality tv. Typically at the end of the season the biggest stories are title deciders, fights for European football and who will head on a plane to the U.S. for the FIFA World Cup. 

When Michael Olise’s top corner dagger sent Los Blancos back to Madrid in the Champions League Quarterfinals at the hands of Bayern Munich, it meant Real Madrid would go trophyless for the second straight season. 

This was the culmination of multiple seasons of problems on and off the pitch, large egos and no club control over anything. 

When Real Madrid’s fullback  Ferland Mendy went down with an injury in early May, it was the club’s 120th injury in the last two seasons. This would make you think the medical staff took advice from ChatGPT, which is exactly what they did. 

Real Madrid’s ex-nutrition specialist Itziar González claimed the club’s medical team relies on ChatGPT for supplements on an Instagram story. Additionally, when Real Madrid’s striker Kylian Mbappe had his knee injury mis-diagnosed, reports emerged claiming the medical team did an MRI on his healthy right knee instead of his injured left knee. 

These reports were denied by the club but the mistake is not out of the question. This same unprofessionalism invades the pitch as well, as many of the players blame everyone but themselves for their shortcomings. 

Going back to the match against Bayern Munich, the game was tied 4-4 on aggregate when midfielder Eduardo Camavinga came on to hold the result to reach extra time. 20 minutes later he got a yellow card, then only eight minutes later he got another, sending him off. 

Bayern proceeded to score two goals and as Madrid players were leaving they called the decision “a joke” and “unfair.”  

From this point on the players didn’t care anymore as they had nothing to play for. The league title was all for Barcelona’s taking. Instead of playing for pride and giving fans a reason to hope for next season, the dressing room turned into a clown-show. 

It started back when Mendy got injured and fullback Fran Garcia took his place instead of fullback Alvaro Carreras. The camera caught him laughing to himself which seemed to be a continuous cycle of unprofessionalism according to many in the club. 

It’s highly speculated Carreras and center back Antonio Rudiger had a heated exchange in the dressing room before this, but social media statements made showed the two had apologized to one another.  

What happened May 7, was a huge blow to any professionalism and dignity remaining at Real Madrid. Midfielders Federico Valverde and Aurelien Tchouameni’s argument turned physical as Valverde had to go to the hospital for a cut on his head. Each were fined half a million euros and have apologized to one another and to the club. 

Finally, there is still an elephant that needs to be addressed. When Mbappe put pen to paper with Los Blancos in 2024, the multi-year transfer saga had finally come to an end. 

This signing was written in the stars, as if destiny itself made Mbappe the superstar of French football and Real Madrid. 

However, Mbappe has yet to win anything with Real Madrid and a weird trend has emerged. The dictator Mbappe meme has intensified in the last handful of months where comment sections are filled with Mbappe’s face edited into military uniforms dressed as a dictator. 

A short clip shows Rudiger slapping a Real Madrid coach with Mbappe looking on, not doing anything to stop it. Of course, there is context that fans don’t have, but judging the facial expression of the coach and Rudiger’s body language, it’s unlikely the slaps were of anything but malice, aggression or frustration. 

The meme is meant to show the power Mbappe has over staff, coaches and players at the club. To a certain extent, the meme does have validity. Manager Xabi Alonso likely left his position knowing what the situation would turn into. Alonso and Mbappe clashed a handful of times over substituting Mbappe. 

Mbappe seems to have the attitude that he is bigger than the club, so much so he took a vacation to Italy before El Classico where the title could be decided. This angered the entire Real Madrid fanbase to the point where a petition was made to get Mbappe out of the club. 

The petition reached 73 million signatures by May 10 despite being created six days earlier. The rate is unprecedented and whether the club will pay any attention to this is up in the air. What we do know about this club is it has no power over the players and can’t manage egos. 

What makes this environment more hostile is Jose Mourinho coming in as manager next year. Every week will be a reality show, which is just what neutrals like myself need. 

The Portuguese manager is one of the most accomplished, having won two Champions Leagues, three Premier League titles and four World’s Best Club Coach at different clubs. 

Currently, Real Madrid has presidential elections ongoing, with incumbent Florentino Perez at risk of losing the job he’s held since June of 2000. It’s the first time he has been contested in over 20 years, as Enrique Riquelme has promised star signings if he were to win the election. 

Real Madrid is full of players who are entitled and self-centered. Each of them, the stars of their old clubs, now have specific roles at Madrid they cannot wrap their heads around. It’s almost a soap opera, and a great one at that. 

Real Madrid’s dirty laundry is out in the open for the world to see, and the dictator Mbappe memes are only growing. What’s best is understanding this season was a disaster and the World Cup offers a brand new slate.