In a 1988 interview, Pablo Escobar said co*caine wasnโt the real problem...hypocrisy was.
He argued that drugs spread because of demand, just like alcohol, and that the US only saw co*caine as dangerous because Colombians controlled the trade.
Real Madrid hasn't won a major trophy in two years. It just became the highest-earning sports team in history anyway, beating the Dallas Cowboys. The man behind it isn't a coach or a player. He builds skyscrapers for a living, and he doesn't even own the club.
His name is Florentino Pรฉrez, and he runs the biggest construction company in Spain, one of the largest anywhere. Real Madrid belongs to its fans, about 90,000 of them, who vote every few years on who runs the place. This Sunday they picked him again. It was the first time in twenty years that anyone even ran against him, and he'll be in charge until 2030.
His smartest move had nothing to do with football. When he took over in 2000, the club was buried under close to 300 million euros of debt. So he talked the city into letting developers build office towers on Real Madrid's old training ground. The land sold, four skyscrapers went up that still stand on the Madrid skyline, and the debt was gone almost overnight, with plenty left to start buying the best players alive. (Years later the EU looked into whether the city had overpaid on purpose to bail the club out. Nothing came of it.)
Then came the players fans still argue about, one global superstar nearly every summer: Figo, Zidane, Ronaldo, Beckham. Pรฉrez never pretended it was only about football. When his marketing chief heard Manchester United would sell Beckham for about 35 million euros, he called Pรฉrez yelling that it was a steal. United had priced a footballer. Madrid was buying a worldwide brand it figured was worth ten times more in shirts and sponsorship deals. Within a year of signing him, Madrid had passed United as the most profitable club on earth. Pรฉrez wanted his club to run like Ferrari, a name so strong the money keeps coming whether you win on Saturday or not.
The new stadium is the same idea in concrete. He spent 1.3 billion euros rebuilding it over one thing that bugged him: a football ground hosts maybe 25 games a year and sits dark the other 340 days. His version barely sleeps. It hosts concerts and tours now, and last November it held an American football game. The pitch even slides underground so the place can be rented out without wrecking the grass. Running flat out, it's built to bring in close to a million euros a day.
He has still won plenty on the field, seven Champions League titles across his two spells, from Zidane's famous volley in 2002 to the trophies in 2022 and 2024. But the number that explains him best is simpler. Last year, with nothing big to show for it on the pitch, the club's value still climbed 41 percent. So this week 90,000 fans gave him four more years, and he still doesn't own a single share of the club he turned into the highest-earning team in world sport.
๐จ| ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐: Barcelona are finalising their bid to host the 2029 UEFA Champions League FINAL at the renovated Spotify Camp Nou, with the required documentation set to be submitted to UEFA by Wednesday.
The stadium is expected to hold 104,600 spectators, making it the largest in Europe, and the bid has the support of both the Spanish government and Barcelona City Council. [@sport] #fcblive ๐๏ธ
๐จ๐๏ธ| Kylian Mbappe: โBarรงa has had a huge impact on the history of football, but Real Madrid are the global benchmark. For everyone in the world, apart from Barรงa supporters, there is consensus that Real Mardrid is the biggest club in the world.โ #fcblive
๐จ๐| ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐: รscar Gistau will do the pre-season with the first team. The 18-year-old STRIKER joins Hamza Abdelkarim, Ebrima Tunkara and Orian Goren as the La Masia prospects confirmed to start the summer under the orders of Hansi Flick. [@jaumemarcet] #fcblive โญ
๐จ| ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐: Bayern Munich are interested in signing ex-Barรงa Sergiรฑo Dest from PSV Eindhoven. [@MatteMoretto]
Note: Barcelona hold a 20% sell-on clause on the player. #fcblive ๐
๐จ๐๏ธ| ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐: Bernardo remains VERY EAGER to join Barรงa and has now made his willingness to wait for the club clear. [@ffpolo] #fcblive ๐ต๐น
Couture brands like Christian Dior, Prada and Gucci all have a secret weapon: the embroiderers at this Mumbai atelier, who are keeping over 5,000 years of cultural heritage alive. https://t.co/7NicI21zsf
๐จ๐| ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐: Dani Olmo will receive a CONTRACT IMPROVEMENT this summer as part of an agreement signed when he joined Barcelona in 2024. The club want to reward Olmo for the financial sacrifices he made to complete the move, including accepting a lower salary and helping the club comply with financial fair play requirements at that time. [@martinezferran] #fcblive
๐จ| ๐๐๐๐ ๐๐: Newcastle United want Ez Abde to replace Anthony Gordon, while Real Betis are targeting Jan Virgili to replace Abde. Barcelona hold 20% of Abdeโs future sale and 40% of Virgiliโs, meaning both deals could indirectly HELP lower the overall cost of the Gordon operation. [@mundodeportivo] #fcblive
tml vibez dropped โhelloโ with victony this month but because he did not read clause of contract properly, he canโt promote the song or any other future song/album he drops. worse, he needs to drop these songs else he ainโt fulfilling part of his contracts.
this is worse than being in a cult group. always have your lawyers ready to scrutinize your contract papers!!
๐จ๐| Barcelona have officially joined the race to sign Anthony Gordon. Newcastle United are now in direct talks with both Barรงa and Bayern Munich over the 25-year-old winger. Gordon was left unused in Newcastleโs final four matches as the club protected him ahead of a possible summer transfer. Newcastle are demanding around ยฃ75Mโยฃ80M for the player, who still has four years left on his contract. [@SkySports_Keith] #fcblive ๐ฅ๐ด๓ ง๓ ข๓ ฅ๓ ฎ๓ ง๓ ฟ
The U.S. is scaling back the forces it plans to send to Europe in a crisis, a fresh step by the Trump administration to shrink its military support for NATO allies https://t.co/Q9Jck1raX3
Rick Ross says 50 Cent doesnโt own his masters and lives in a 2 bedroom apartment.
"All I used to tell him is: you can't dress, you're not really getting no money, you don't own your masters."
"And I'm not speaking down on him because he lives in a two bedroom apartment, butย Eminem saved you, Dr. Dre saved you, all the big names, Rozay did it himself."
Russiaโs war against Ukraine has already shown the world a new type of warfare dominated by aerial drones. But on the ground, remotely controlled vehicles are the latest technological evolution.
On the front lines of Ukraine's ground drone revolution: https://t.co/Dvtd27zayb
Today, I signed Executive Order No 1 of 2026 titled; Executive Order on the Regulation of Associations, Groups and Organisations Offering Security and Allied Services in Oyo State.
This Executive Order is designed to ensure that all groups involved in security-related activities operate within a clear legal and operational framework that supports peace, order and the rule of law.
In my remarks, I stated that the security agencies are working round the clock to ensure the safe return of the children and teachers kidnapped in Oriire LGA.