Real Madrid didn’t want to wait. Less than 24 hours after Carlo Ancelotti’s departure, the club made official what was already an open secret. Xabi Alonso will take over the Santiago Bernabéu bench from the Italian coach, who said goodbye yesterday. The Spanish coach has signed until 2028 and arrives with the aim of leading a change of cycle that is expected to restore the team’s level of play and titles.
This is how Real Madrid announced it:
Real Madrid C. F. announces that Xabi Alonso will be the coach of Real Madrid for the next three seasons, from June 1, 2025, to June 30, 2028.
Xabi Alonso is one of the greatest legends of Real Madrid and world football. He played for our club in 236 official matches between 2009 and 2014. During that time, he won six titles: the tenth European Cup in Lisbon, one European Super Cup, one La Liga title, two Copa del Rey titles, and one Spanish Super Cup.
Xabi Alonso is also a legend of the Spanish national team, with whom he won one World Cup (2010) and two European Championships (2008 and 2012) in 113 international appearances.
Xabi Alonso began his coaching career in Real Madrid’s youth academy, managing the Under-14 team during the 2018-2019 season, with whom he won the league title and the Champions Tournament.
He now returns to Real Madrid as one of the best coaches in the world, after making history at Bayer Leverkusen, where he won the German league, cup and Super Cup in three seasons.
Tomorrow, Monday 26 May, at 12:30 pm, Xabi Alonso will be presented as the new coach of Real Madrid at an event that will take place at Real Madrid City.
Prior to this, Real Madrid president Florentino Pérez will welcome Xabi Alonso for the formal signing ceremony that will link our new coach to the club for the next three seasons.
After the presentation, Xabi Alonso will address the media in the press room at Real Madrid City.
Xabi Alonso’s first challenges
His arrival has been in the works for months and has Madrid fans very excited, as they have high hopes that the Spanish coach will turn the team’s fortunes around. After his presentation on Monday, he will begin the hard work with many tasks on the agenda. The first of these has to do with the squad. He will have to make decisions regarding the current players and possible new signings.
As soon as he arrives, there are international commitments with the national teams, so he will be without several players for a few days, but after that, it’s time to get down to work for the Club World Cup, which begins on June 14 and which Real Madrid wants to win. That is the first challenge facing the Tolosa-born coach, who will then have a short preseason to prepare for the start of a league campaign in which he will be fighting for the title.