This season there will be no corridor. The Atletico Madrid will not honor real Madridcurrent LaLiga champion 21/22. This gesture of respect has been filled with controversy over the years. The first hall of honor dates back to 1970. Athletic Club made the hall for the brand-new champion, Atlético de Madrid, during the Copa del Rey round of 16 match.
It is not the first time that a team has refused to make this gesture of sportsmanship. There are precedents. Without going any further, on the first day of this season, Atlético de Madrid faced Celta de Vigo, who decided not to make the traditional corridor to the colchoneros. It must be remembered that Atlético was proclaimed champion of the 20/21 LaLiga on the last day of the championship after beating Valladolid 2-1.
The focus of the controversy
The last controversies arose between Real Madrid and FC Barcelona. The white club did not make the corridor to the azulgranas in 2018. To know the reason for this refusal, you have to look back. A year before, Barça refused to pay tribute to the meringues when they were proclaimed champions of the Club World Cup.
Despite these disputes between two great rivals, Real Madrid and FC Barcelona have starred in large corridors like the one from the 2007/08 season. Barça, led at the time by Rijkaard, made way for Bernd Schuster’s Real Madrid at the Santiago Bernabéu. The Whites won the Clásico after signing a 4-1 victory with goals from Raúl, Robben, Higuaín and Van Nistelrooy.
This tradition of more than half a century will not be carried out in the Madrid derby between Atletico Madrid and Real Madrid. Giménez has already made it clear: “We congratulate Madrid, but we respect our fans.”