‘Galácticos’ available on ESPN Player across Europe, Middle East and Africa. This three-part documentary series charts Florentino Perez’ Galactico revolution at Real Madrid at the turn of the century. Three 30-minute episodes available on ESPN Player from February 24th. The exclusive documentary series from ESPN’s award-winning documentary team is available across Europe, Middle East & Africa.
ESPN Player is set to premiere a brand-new ESPN Originals series ‘Galácticos’, documenting Florentino Pérez’ first term as president of Real Madrid and the Galactico revolution he oversaw to make Real Madrid the most glamorous and successful football club the world has ever seen.
The documentary includes fascinating insights from a stellar cast of Real Madrid legends, including Iker Casillas, Roberto Carlos, Fernando Hierro, Claude Makélélé, Fernando Morientes, Steve McManaman and Manager Vicente del Bosque, alongside individuals closest to Perez. The three-part series traces Real Madrid’s time under Perez, from his Presidential win and controversial transfer of Luis Figo from bitter rivals Barcelona in July 2000, to the resignation of his first term as Real Madrid President in February 2006 following the fallout from his ‘Galáctico’ vision.
The three films focus on the transfers of Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldo and David Beckham, who joined the club between 2001 to 2003 and, alongside Figo, formed the Galáctico generation. The series explores Perez’ vision to modernise Real Madrid in a new world of sponsorship, image rights and the internet to become a global sporting superpower in the 2000s.
In Perez’ first three years at the club Real won two La Liga titles, the UEFA Champions League in 2002, two Spanish Super Cups, the European Super Cup and the Intercontinental Cup.
Yet as Perez’ reign progressed, we hear from key players, board members and journalists about the friction between the old and new Real Madrid. With huge egos in both the dressing room and board room, and with the importance of marketing over football, the breaking-up of Real’s winning formula led to the demise of the ‘Galáctico’ revolution, ending in Perez resigning from his role at the club in 2006.
ESPN Films
All ESPN Player subscriptions include access to the ESPN Films catalogue of sports documentaries, including many from the critically acclaimed 30 For 30 series. It includes movies telling some of the most intriguing, controversial and unbelievable stories in the history of sport, such as The Two Escobars chronicling how the fates of two Colombians – Andres Escobar, the inspirational captain of Nacional, and Pablo Escobar, the notorious leader of the Medellin cartel – were permanently linked.
ESPN.com, the world’s leading digital sports property, will deliver the latest news, exclusive content, in-depth analysis and comprehensive reports to fans throughout the Bowl season and College Football Playoff.
