Real Madrid has cancelled or rescheduled all concerts at its Santiago Bernabéu stadium and is working to comply with council noise regulations after local people complained that a series of loud, late gigs had turned the arena into a “torture-drome”.
Although best known as the home of one of Spain’s greatest football teams, the Bernabéu – which has just undergone a five-year, €900m (£760m) refurbishment – has hosted a string of high-profile concerts over the spring and summer. Recent headliners have included Taylor Swift, Luis Miguel and the Colombian star Karol G.
But while the concerts delighted some music fans, they drove many local people to despair. Faced with decibels far exceeding legal levels, midnight finish times, fans camping out in local parks, drunk people urinating in doorways and the blocking off of residential roads, a group representing those living around the stadium began legal action against those responsible, including Madrid city council.
In a statement released on Friday, the club said it had decided to rethink its concert schedule.
“Real Madrid FC is announcing that it has decided to provisionally reschedule its event and concert programme at the Santiago Bernabéu stadium,” it said. “This decision is part of a raft of measures that the club is taking to ensure that the concerts comply strictly with the relevant municipal regulations.”
Despite the introduction of soundproofing measures, “different organisers and promoters” had still found it difficult to comply with council noise regulations, the statement said.
It added: “Real Madrid will continue working to make sure that the necessary sound production and emission conditions are in place to allow concerts to be held in our stadium.”
The statement said concerts by the Spanish artists Dellafuente and Aitana, slated for November and December, would be rescheduled, as would concerts next March by Lola Índigo. A K-pop concert in October has been cancelled.
The club said it was still planning a large number of shows and events to make the most of the revamped stadium, but added: “Real Madrid will continue working with the Madrid regional government and Madrid city council when it comes to sustainability and coexistence, and its aim is always to ensure that the stadium’s activities live up to its commitment to the city of Madrid and are beneficial to the surrounding environment.”
José Manuel Paredes, a spokesperson for the association that was formed in response to the concert noise, said the announcement had come as a temporary relief to those around the stadium but stressed that the group had not abandoned its legal action.
“We’ve managed to stop things in the neighbourhood getting worse for at least six months, so things are better,” he said. “But that doesn’t mean that we’re giving up the fight. The problem is still the fact that the stadium isn’t equipped to be a concert venue, nor will it be.”
Paredes said the Bernabéu was only licensed by the council to hold sporting fixtures and the odd “extraordinary event”, and was not meant to be holding frequent concerts.
“We just need them to follow the law – no more, no less,” he said.
