Cristiano Ronaldo’s $3.7 Million Ambition Faces Hurdle With Pending Approval From Madrid Authorities- Reports

Cristiano Ronaldo‘s real estate portfolio is arguably the crown jewel of his staggering business empire. Ronaldo owns a chain of luxury hotels spread across Europe and other regions. He recently acquired a luxury property in Dubai’s red-hot real estate hub. Furthermore, he is building a luxury mansion in Portugal. However, not all the Al Nassr captain’s investments in real estate have turned out well. As of now, the 5x Ballon d’Or winner is struggling to offload a Madrid-based property he bought in 2019.

Cristiano Ronaldo bought a penthouse for $3.7 million in a Four Seasons luxury complex in Canalejas near Puerta del Sol, Madrid. He has tried selling this apartment to one of his own Portuguese companies since December 2023. However, Spanish authorities halted the sale of the property in January this year, citing it is a part of a complex considered Asset of Cultural Interest (BIC) in the Monument category. To complete the transaction, Ronaldo is required to notify the Ministry of Culture and Sports, the City Council, and the Community of Madrid and get their approval, as reported by Epe.es.

The report added that these authorities can exercise the right of first refusal and block the sale. However, such a right is rarely exercised in the case of properties of cultural interest. Rather, it is used more in connection with movable properties, such as paintings and other artifacts. Besides, the penthouse’s architect finds it quite strange that Spanish authorities labeled a property in Canalejas as one of cultural interest.

Anyhow, these factors are not going to let Cristiano Ronaldo off the hook to get approval from authorities. And Ronaldo’s entourage is tight-lipped about the developments of this sale.

Cristiano Ronaldo’s entourage waits for approval in silence

This 2019 purchase has landed Cristiano Ronaldo in a riddle because the complex that houses the property is also home to the Canalejas Gallery, which is of cultural interest. Since Ronaldo’s apartment is on the eighth floor, he might complete the sale smoothly. It is because the eighth floor has been a novel addition to the complex, and such additions rarely come under properties of cultural interest. However, Ronaldo still has to report the sale and get a green signal from the aforementioned authorities.

Ronaldo has only notified the sale to the General Subdirectorate of Management and Coordination of Cultural Assets, as per Epe.es. However, they are yet to respond to the former Real Madrid attacker. Besides, these authorities have three months to revert to the Portuguese star’s entourage. When the publication that reported this asked CR7’s entourage to comment on the sale, they refused to do so. Only time will tell if the Al Nassr captain will get a clean chit in his erstwhile Madrid investment.