The idea that Spanish football should be seen as a united team again after a period of fear was one of the focuses of Rafael Louzán’s message at the Extraordinary General Assembly of the Royal Spanish Football Federation (RFEF), as the leader highlighted the progress made in internal cohesion and in the relationship with the various actors in the sport, just before the anniversary of his inauguration. As the RFEF reported and Louzán himself explained in detail before the Assembly, the institution has completed a year of its new management since December 16, 2024, a period in which, according to its President, dialogue and shared responsibility have been promoted.
According to presidential statements published by the RFEF, the institution’s active policy of openness towards all members of the football ecosystem has characterized this phase. Louzán recalled that when he took office he called for “trust, unity, work and a certain amount of flexibility” to rebuild the institution and regain lost time. He explained to those attending the meeting: “We came to do something, not to be, to face problems and change things, and I think we have done a good job, but now it is up to you to evaluate.” The media also reported that Louzán attributed the strengthening of the “Union in Football” to management focused on consensus and joint work.
One of the statements that the leader highlighted most relates to redefining the role of the association as a meeting point for national football. According to the RFEF, Louzán said: “Today and for a year everyone enters this house of Spanish football and, above all, society in general believes in us. We are one, we are the house of all football actors, where we enter to talk, resolve disagreements and reach consensus and agreements.” With these words, the President emphasized the importance of consensus and direct dialogue, as opposed to methods of the past, such as communicating via burofax or referring disputes to judicial authorities.
Louzán’s speech, collected by the RFEF, emphasized that the idea of the union does not mean the elimination of differences, but rather the management of differences within the framework of respect and joint work. “Union does not agree on all points. I understand union in football as loyalty, responsibility and cooperation for the good of our sport. We can only move forward through words and dialogue between institutions. We opened our doors to everyone and went out to talk to everyone,” he said.
The president also used his intervention to highlight a change in leadership compared to previous phases in which the association had more tense or formal relations with other important institutions for the development of football in Spain. As the RFEF published, Louzán explicitly noted the end of a phase characterized by the predominance of strict formal communication and the judicialization of conflicts: “The time in which this House communicated with other important institutions of Spanish football through burofaxes or complaints in court is over.”
Louzán also expressed that the fundamental objective of his mandate is to give the RFEF greater dialogue capacity and a more solid internal structure. He explained that the concrete results of his management can only be assessed over time, but also expressed his view that the foundations for continuous improvement have been laid: “I have repeated this year that we come to do things. Time will tell whether we do it well or badly, but for now I believe we have laid the foundations for improving our football.” Therefore, the speech collected and disseminated by the RFEF focused on the assessment of a first year of leadership, where the demand for consensus, institutional openness and responsibility were the characteristic features of this period.
In his speech, Louzán emphasized that the trust of society has been restored during this period, stressing that the association currently acts as a “common house” open to players, coaches, referees and other participants in Spanish football. According to the President, the new direction focuses on finding agreements and dealing with disagreements in internal discussion areas and ignores judicial channels in favor of dialogue procedures.
The medium reproduced part of the atmosphere of the Assembly, in which both the Executive Board and the members of the Assembly highlighted the institutional changes and the new dynamics inaugurated by the current administration. The speeches brought to the table the demand for a federation characterized by a diversity of voices and a willingness to compromise. Finally, as the RFEF reported and as the president himself explained, the first part of Rafael Louzán’s mandate was marked by efforts to strengthen consensus mechanisms and shared responsibility in the management of Spanish football.
About The Author
