In the afternoon, a strange conclave takes place on the Bernabéu pitch, where a curious mix of footballers, tennis players, Real Madrid directors, and representatives of the Mutua Madrid Open, which is held from this Monday (with qualifying rounds) at the Caja Mágica, parade. Rafael Nadal and Jude Bellingham, or Thibaut Courtois with Jannik Sinner and Linda Caicedo with Iga Swiatek, happily kicking a penalty, chat there. However, the eyes of the few people participating in the scene turn to the top of a chair when the club president, Florentino Pérez, ascends and poses with satisfaction, as if he were the match judge. After all, one of his dreams was to set up a tennis court inside the stadium. An unprecedented photo, but also with an asterisk. It was what he wanted, but it falls short.
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For a long time, the leader has tried to organize a duel between the protagonists of one of the most gentlemanly rivalries in sports history. And there Nadal smiles, retired two years ago, but not the Swiss Roger Federer, inactive for four. In the absence of the genius and, therefore, of that record he yearns for of gathering 80,000 people to frame the tennis match with the most spectators of all time, Pérez had the presence of the current world number one, Jannik Sinner, and world number two, Swiatek, this Wednesday. More or less satisfied all around: the president boasts about the stadium, the players enjoy the exceptional nature of the meeting, and the Madrid tournament achieves the desired impact. A lure called Bernabéu.
Madrid’s home is presented as an “additional option” for the stars and the rest of the tennis players who have landed in the Spanish capital these days, but these players, focused on their performance on clay, prefer to train in a scenario similar to the one in which they will compete. A nice postcard, but they are two completely different worlds.
A month ago, it emerged that both parties had agreed to install a training court, and immediately afterwards, the tournament management, personified by Feliciano López and Garbiñe Muguruza, confirmed it by posing inside the Concha Espina stadium. “This year’s proposal will raise the bar even higher,” announced the chief executive, Gerard Tsobanian. In its desire to gain repercussion and relevance, the Mutua Madrid Open has been turning the screw with more or less success: from the failed blue clay of 2012 to its current consolidation, passing through the move from the Rockódromo in Casa de Campo to the Caja Mágica in the San Fermín neighborhood and the conversion of an exclusively male format into a mixed one.
From this Friday until Sunday, that is, for four days, all players who wish to do so will be able to train at the Bernabéu. However, privately. According to what this newspaper has learned, neither journalists nor graphic media will be able to access the stadium for the time being. As soon as Tuesday’s match between Real Madrid and Alavés ended, with a victory for the whites (2-1), the operators began the assembly, with the same characteristics that the organization used in its day to promote the tennis event in Plaza de Colón (2023), Plaza Mayor (2024) and at the foot of the Picasso Tower (2025).
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“The idea stems from the tournament’s desire to do different and innovative things, but without altering the event’s core in any way,” Feliciano López tells this newspaper. “The Bernabéu court is an additional and voluntary option for players who want to train there. It does not replace the Caja Mágica, it does not replace the Tennis Garden [the usual training area], and it does not change the experience of the fan who buys a ticket to see their favorite tennis players train where they always do,” he clarifies; “and due to the stadium’s own logistics, we also cannot propose a general opening to the public without interfering with its normal operation. The essential thing is that the tournament’s operations remain where they always are, and this adds, it doesn’t subtract.”
The new practice court responds to a strategy and acts as a call. A very tempting lure. However, it does not seem too ideal for tennis players to prepare in an environment very different from that of the Caja Mágica and covered, considering, moreover, the already complex adaptation to Madrid’s altitude, where professionals have traditionally struggled to adapt to conditions very different from those of Roland Garros, the ultimate goal of the clay court season. Asked about this matter, world number one Aryna Sabalenka ruled it out. The proposal is tempting, but discarded if the ultimate goal is good preparation.
“It will be a bit confusing. I would have liked to do it before the tournament, but now I feel it will be different from doing it here [at the Caja Mágica]. It’s a large, covered stadium… You have to adapt, so I prefer to focus here. I hope to do it another time because it’s a unique experience,” the Belarusian concluded. It remains to be seen now what the tennis players’ response will be from now on.
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