The Bernabéu stands claim their place: “We have lost 80% of sales; “Customers do not know where we are.”

The Santiago Bernabéu stands have accompanied Real Madrid to every home game for decades. Attending every game in the Madrid temple, the previous ones can no longer be imagined without these merchants, who are part of the club’s history. However, since shortly before the pandemic and due to the stadium’s renovation works, these stores have been constantly moved away from their traditional locations, which has led to a drop in sales of up to 80%, according to the ABC of the Provincial Street Association. Merchants and Fairs of Madrid With the reform of the surroundings of the Santiago Bernabéu almost complete, these stands have not yet managed to have a fixed location, as they have had for years. Rafael Salgado Street, located on one side and where these stalls have always been located, is now the source of concern for these vendors, because customers “no longer know where to find them”. With the underground car park works, in February 2024, a decree from the Municipal Commission of the Chamartín District ordered the temporary change of 22 locations on the sides of the Paseo de la Castellana. This was the workspace of these traders until June 30, when they returned to Rafael Salgado and were present at numerous concerts held at the Santiago Bernabéu last summer. This temporary move posed an economic problem for these companies that worked far from the festive atmosphere around the stadium. “It is the emotion of the moment that pushes the one who sings at the gates of the Bernabéu to buy a scarf. Even though I already have a lot at home,” says Javier Herrero, one of the stall owners who grew up around the white temple. Related Standard News No Madrid City Council considers the suspension of concerts at the Bernabéu ABC as “appropriate” Yesterday, during the Real Madrid-Alavés league match, on this road that separates Padre Damián from La Castellana, no one bought the Madrid star’s jersey or took the opportunity to get a bag of pipes before the opening whistle. A second decree imposed at the end of August, a few hours before the first match of the season at the Bernabeú, on these vendors to re-establish their stores on the Paseo de la Castellana. This provisional order, still in force, affects 51 of these traders. However, unlike the first, “security problems” are alleged. “Nothing suited us, so we requested reports from the competent authorities. However, everyone has been in favor of our activity. The novelty would be that we are bored now,” Herrero explains to the newspaper. Unviable location This new site is not viable in the long term, the association emphasizes. These fifty stores that have moved have joined those that were already in this space. “They are isolated stands, it is not a market,” they emphasize, the city hall of the capital assures for its part that this work has not yet been received, so the space cannot be occupied. Even if they were able to operate all summer. The city councilor of Chamartín, during the last plenary session held on September 11, asked the association for a period of 20 days to answer all her questions. However, the uncertainty about its future generates increasing nervousness every day among the owners of these posts. “We cannot ignore that we have mortgages to pay, the children’s school… We must know what is going to happen to us, they cannot play like that with the families,” laments Herrero, although he believes that the reasons for this change lie in a simple bureaucratic issue and that they “harm them unintentionally”. The last few years have been particularly difficult for this sector. The blow began with the works in the stadium and was followed by the pandemic with its respective capacity reduction measures. “Since the Covid stage, we have not raised our heads, with long periods without working and raffles so that the activity is not suspended”, they determine from the Association of Merchants and Fairs of Madrid. Without trumpets, these merchants do not seek to present themselves. to the city hall or the club any other new front to face – in reference to the open neighborhood war against the concerts at the Santiago Bernabéu and the noise it generates. In fact, they have stopped selling trumpets to contribute to the fight against noise in the area and would agree to give up attending these events if their presence represents an excessive burden on the environment. “We are aware that we are selling the Madrid shield and working on public property. We just want to work and be heard a little,” insists the 52-year-old from Madrid. In the mid-1960s, before football teams began to have their own merchandising, Javier Herrero’s father and uncle decided to take over one of these positions. Family business “My father had a screen printing business and he sold flags with the Real Madrid shield. All this before copyright existed and we started trading in official products,” says the man who has been attending the home games of the team of his life since he was a child. It is the same profile as that of many owners of these posts. In the surroundings of the stadium, they have seen the city and the fans grow and they assure that they would not change for anything the fact of being able to work in an environment like the one we know in this area; despite the seven-hour working day, two days a week at most, the rain that often forces them to close or the extreme heat that increases inside the stands, of course, it is not something they consider. Not only because they have found great support among the Madrid fan clubs, but also because without them, the space in which they work would end up being occupied by the illegal sale of products. “When I am on duty, I can inform the police of the presence of manteros,” says Herrero. “We don’t think it’s part of the plans of the city council or Real Madrid. But we would like to have information in advance about what they plan to do with us,” he says. Soon, Concha Espina Avenue – on the other side of the stadium – will undergo works and, so far, Herrero assures that no one has communicated anything to them.

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