Monday briefing: Real Madrid wage bill rises €38m in first half as profit falls 84 per cent

Real Madrid paid €277.5 million in salaries in the first six months of the 2025/26 season, a €38 million (16 per cent) increase on the same period a year earlier, according to interim financials filed by the club.

The higher wage bill contributed to a sharp fall in profitability. Pre-tax profit for the six months to December 2025 was €6.1 million, down 84 per cent from €38.3 million in the same period the previous year.

Most of the increase in personnel costs came from football st