RM TV CODE OF ETHICS
1. Introduction
2. Mission, Vision and Values of Real Madrid
3. Real Madrid Code of Ethics
4. Real Madrid Ethics Committee
5. Content and programing of Real Madrid Television
6. Content Quality Committee
7. Commercial communication
1. Introduction
Real Madrid television is an initiative by Real Madrid Club de Fútbol, which shares the fundamental values of its Code of Ethics.
Therefore, Real Madrid’s Code of Ethics is fully applied to Real Madrid Television, who with regard to their activity, has specific sections dedicated to the channel’s content, programming and advertising to be broadcast.
This document applies all of these rules, which, as a whole, form the Code of Ethics that governs the activity of Real Madrid Television in all aspects.
Real Madrid Club de Fútbol has, since its founding, been defined by its Values and its idea of Corporate Responsibility towards all groups of interest with which it works.
Real Madrid Television inherits these values and Corporate Responsibility, especially towards its own groups of interest, starting with the audiences it serves.
Furthermore, Real Madrid Television echoes the beliefs of Real Madrid Club de Fútbol in sport, with the training and development of young sportspersons and the full and unconditional support of sport in the fight against:
- Violence in all of it’s forms
- Racism, xenophobia and all forms of intolerance towards other people
- Bullying of any kind, especially bullying of minors
- Match fixing, illegal betting and any general forms of corruption
- Doping and any sullying of the integrity of the sport
- Drugs and any kind of harmful or consumption which is dangerous for an individual’s health and youth development
2. MISSION, VISION AND VALUES OF REAL MADRID
Mission
An open and multicultural club, appreciated and respected around the world for its sporting achievements and its values that are found in the search for excellence on and off the pitch, and contribute to fulfilling the expectations of its members and supporters.
Vision
A club which is a world leader in football and basketball that, through its sporting achievements, fulfils the expectations of all of its supporters both nationally and internationally, that preserves its important historical legacy, that manages its heritage with rigour and transparency to benefit its members, and that acts with social responsibility and good corporate management.
Values
Winning Spirit – Real Madrid aims for the highest achievements in all competitions in which it competes, without ever giving up, and giving proof of its constant work and its loyalty to supporters.
Sportsmanship - Real Madrid are a sincere and honest rival on the pitch, who operate with good faith and respect for all the teams they compete against and their fans. Off the pitch, we want to maintain fraternal relations and solidarity with all other clubs, offering them and the national and international sporting authorities our continued support.
Excellency and Quality – Real Madrid aspires to having the best Spanish and foreign players in its ranks, instilling in them its dedication to the club’s own values, corresponding with the support of the fans with a sporting mission based on criteria such as quality, discipline and the capacity to make sacrifices. In managing its activities, it looks above all, to good leadership and the constant search for excellency.
Team philosophy – many people make up Real Madrid; from the sportspersons to the professionals, we aim to work as a team, bringing the best of our individual capabilities to benefit the club as a collective, without personal or professional egotism.
Training- Real Madrid devotes great continued effort in the discovery and education of new sporting values, dedicating attention and necessary resources to all of its youth teams and caring not only for sports training of its young people, but also social and ethical training and citizenship.
Social responsibility- Real Madrid are aware of the high social repercussions of its activities and for that reason dedicates resources to comply with the highest standards of corporate management, and the promotion of the best sporting values, strengthening its relationship with its members, veterans, fan groups and followers, and the development of charitable projects for collective needs both in Spain and abroad.
ECONOMIC RESPONSIBILITY- Real Madrid is conscious that managing material and immaterial assets of exceptional value and importance, to which it is dedicated to administering in a responsible, efficient and honest way to benefit its members.
3. REAL MADRID CODE OF ETHICS
3.1. Introduction
3.1.1 Real Madrid Club de Fútbol has a firm dedication and principles based on ethics, dignity, repute and responsibility. As a sporting entity, it completely identifies with the spirit of competition under strict rules of fair play, and sport’s fight against violence, racism, xenophobia and intolerance.
3.1.2 By virtue of this dedication, the Code of Ethics, aims to establish a code of conduct with compulsory and strict rules of compliance which allow us to contribute to the safeguarding and promotion of the above mentioned values and principles, and with that, the upkeep of a good name and prestige of the entity.
3.1.3 The Code of Ethics applies foremost to Real Madrid employees. From there on, it also applies to any person who at any moment carries out work for the Club or its Foundation, or who provides services to Real Madrid, independent of whether they have a working, commercial or social or other relationship with the club. Furthermore, by way of illustration, in a non-exhaustive manner, it will also be applied to the actions within the Club and the Real Madrid Foundation of players, full time employees, employees of subcontracted companies, freelance workers and other collaborators. Logically, the Code of Ethics will be fully applied to Real Madrid Television, with specifics that will be elaborated on below.
3.2. Principles and general values
3.2.1 Real Madrid adheres unreservedly to the United Nations Global Compact and its 10 principles regarding Human Rights, Labour, Environment and anti-Corruption, to which all of its employees must continuously contribute to.
3.2.2 Real Madrid expects exemplary behaviour from all of its employees. Employees, in addition to complying strictly to legal rules with regard to commerce, work and taxes, must refrain from behaving in a way that although not subject to legal reproach, could result objectionable from an ethical point of view. Their conduct is guided by the following principles and values:
(i) Integrity, transparency and ethical responsibility in its relationship with its employees and Real Madrid members, providers, clients or third parties with whom, regarding their fulfilment, work or have some form of relationship with the Club.
(ii) Dedication to the functions entrusted by Real Madrid, with express renunciation of fulfilment of any type of activity that could involve competition or a conflict of interests with them, or endanger the level of required fulfilment.
(iii) Honest behaviour when using or handling goods (tangible or intangible), work tools, materials, reports, contents etc., supplied for working at the Club.
(iv) Maximum confidentiality in relation to any actions, information or subjects of any nature that that affect Real Madrid, its members and any third parties associated with the club.
(v) Loyalty to the sporting spirit of fair play, fighting unreservedly against all forms of fraud in the competition or match fixing, including doping as a form or affecting sporting performance and impinging the health of sportspersons.
(vi) Full identification with the values of the sport, actively combatting any act of violence, racism, xenophobia or intolerance within the sport.
3.3. Relations between employees and members
3.3.1 Employees will behave towards members of Real Madrid in line with the strict principles of neutrality, without giving members beneficial treatment especially against other people.
3.3.2 No employee should gain personal benefit from their relation with Club members.
3.3.3 The principle of neutrality covers all social acts, and specifically, electoral processes and members meetings.
3.4. Relations between employees
3.4.1 Employees will respect rights of dignity, equal treatment, no discrimination and other fundamental rights, without, in any case, accepting behaviour that could be seen as discriminatory, bullying or harassment, in any way, in the work place, or in other cases whilst working in association with Real Madrid.
3.4.2 Employees maintain the highest levels of integrity and ethics with regard to their relationship with members of the Entity’s sporting staff and any information that involves them. In no case can they look for or obtain, for themselves or third parties, benefits of any kind, prohibited for example, is behaviour such as the following:
(i) Any kind of behaviour which can be seen as taking advantage of the image/reputation of the sportspersons of Real Madrid, or the presence of employees, players or coaches for acts or events, even if it is with their consent.
(ii) Acts that cause damage or endanger the image of sportspersons of Real Madrid.
(iii) Any acts that reveal to the outside world or any third parties of Real Madrid, any form of information concerning the practices of the sportspersons, related to their professional, personal, or familial development, and especially, their personal or contractual information.
3.5. Relations between employees and providers and clients
3.5.1 Employees will respect the interests of Real Madrid with the relationships they maintain with providers and Club clients, without taking advantage of their condition to obtain any kind of personal benefits, for themselves or third parties. Likewise, employees are obliged not to maintain any commercial relationships with any companies that are acknowledged in line with the Principles and Values of this Code of Ethics. Circumstances of competition will, in general, be understood as those in which, either for personal benefit or for that of third parties, an employee undertakes activities akin to those carried out by the club. Conflict of interest covers all situations in which the personal or professional interests of an employee, or their direct family, may be in direct conflict with those of Real Madrid.
3.5.2 Employees who have the power to propose, authorise or approve any kind of contract with the Club, either in work or trade terms, assets belonging to the Club, works, services or supplies of any kind, will abstain from doing so in favour of their partner, parents, children or other dependants up to the second degree, be it by blood or kinship, as with companies or groups of companies in which both people or just the employee has, de facto or de jure, direct or indirectly, their control or those that have a significant influence.
3.5.3 Employees will avoid situations in which could be seen as a conflict of interest in the relationship maintained with providers and clients of the Club, obliging them in any circumstance to put first the interests of Real Madrid. In case of a conflict of interest, the employee affected should announce it and refrain from any influence or participation in the decision process.
3.5.4 In the same way, employees will respect the right to privacy regarding information, which have been revealed to them by providers and clients, considering these, to all effects, as confidential information.
3.5.5 It is totally prohibited for employees to ask for or receive any form of gift, present or token, sponsorship etc. from the providers or Club clients. The only exception to this is small tokens of courtesy (such as Christmas gifts) that are used for social motives. Nor should gifts be offered as a reciprocal to third parties outside of those authorised by the organisation that should be kept within the common limits of good business practice.
3.5.6 It is totally prohibited and will be considered concurrent or competitive activity, if employees provide any kind of salaried service for providers or Club clients.
3.5.7 Employees will be particularly rigorous in implementation of expenses, taking care of expenses for meals in restaurants, travel and invitations to matches, limiting said costs to the minimum required, and always for according to the needs of the club.
3.6. Relationships of employees with other specific groups
3.6.1. As well as all previous points, the employee will maintain conduct in line with the Principles and Values of this Code of Ethics, in relation to the following groups:
(i) In relation to the players in the youth teams, especially those who are underage: Without showing prejudice, the employees will guide their conduct towards these players, strictly observing the principle of neutrality, impartiality and equality in their treatment, with a commitment to fighting against racism, xenophobia, drugs and violence in sport.
In respect to underage players, the club is aware of the special protection that must be shown to their development as sportspeople and as individuals. As a result, the employees must be extremely careful to avoid any form of abuse or bullying of any kind from anyone and they must pay special attention and vigilance towards our young sportspeople, who will be supervised and supported.
All Real Madrid employees must be diligent in completing the regulations protecting youths and the process of incorporating players in the youth system at the academy, with regards to the formation and development of our younger sportspeople.
(ii) In relation to agents and representatives of players: employees are prohibited from having any type of coordinated conduct with agents or representatives of players, even if instigated by them, that could lead to the use of the name of Real Madrid in order to receive a benefit in terms of reputation, image or finance, in favour of the player represented or his agent or representative. The employees will defend the interests of Real Madrid, avoiding any conduct that could lead to the signing of players at the club.
(iii) in relation to media outlets: as a general principle, and aside from instances specifically allowed by Real Madrid as a spokesperson or an authorization from the director of communication, employees must abstain from maintaining relationships with any type of media outlet in matters relating directly or indirectly to Real Madrid. In any case, employees must observe their obligation in respect to confidentiality of information they may have become aware of as a result of their activity with the club.
(iv) Public and private behaviour: The Real Madrid employees must abstain from any public or private behaviours associated with belonging to or working as an employee of the club or that could be considered in conflict with the good image, prestige and reputation of the Real Madrid.
(v) Other proceedings: It is specifically prohibited for Real Madrid employees to obtain, by direct or indirect means of the Real Madrid employees, any benefit, whether economic or any other type as a result of the access to information and events organized by the club, especially by means of any subscription to sports betting in which Real Madrid appear, or the from the resale of tickets, invitations, season tickets or passes for any competition in which the club participates, as well as permitting fraudulent access to anyone to sporting events. At the same time, any type of behaviour which could be seen to predetermine the result of a game or competition via price, intimidation or an agreement is strictly prohibited. Fraud or match fixing in sporting competition is completely against the Values of the club and the sporting spirit, therefore it will be perused and disciplines with the maximum rigor, including doping or falsification of sporting performance and putting at risk the health of the sportspeople.
3.7. Use of IT tools and social networks
3.7.1. The systems, devices and IT or communication tools supplied by the Club to its employees will be for use strictly in a professional capacity and private use will only be justified in instances of emergency or necessity, being restricted to a minimum, and generally excluding use for leisure or entertainment purposes or commercial activity not pertinent to the Club.
3.7.2. Real Madrid reserves the right to carry out checks on the systems, devices and IT or communication tools used by its employees in adherence with legal norms.
3.7.3. Real Madrid employees must, at all times, save their computerised files and documents in the directories specifically tailored to this end (without neglecting the use of passwords where necessary). The Club will have access to any other files, directories or storage systems.
3.7.4. Real Madrid employees will avoid any use of their position in the Club, the Real Madrid brand, symbols or images of the team and players, in a personal capacity on social networks and webpages.
Even in a personal capacity, in their publications on said media platforms or any other, Real Madrid employees with abstain from broadcasting any message in conflict with Club values or policies in regards to the protection of minors and the fight against fraud in competition, doping, violence, racism, xenophobia and intolerance in sport.
3.8. Ethics Committee
3.8.1. Given the importance of the present Code of Ethics, it is presided over by an Ethics Committee, which will take charge of monitoring the observation and fulfilment of the precepts, obligations and instructions in said document.
3.8.2. The Ethics Committee will be formed of between 3 and 6 members chosen by the Club’s Board of Directors. The Board of Directors will be able to delegate the formation and election to the Club’s Executive Committee.
3.8.3. The Ethics Committee’s principal functions, without ruling out those which may contribute to their successful functioning or which may be assigned to them by the Board of Directors, are as follows:
(i) Interpreting the content of this Code of Ethics and if necessary providing solutions to any discrepancies that may arise in the interpretation of said document.
(ii) Clarifying any doubts submitted in terms of the behaviour or conduct of its employees.
(iii) Performing a monitoring function and propose updates or modifications to the Code of Ethics. In any case, the modification of the Code of Ethics will be the exclusive jurisdiction of the Board of Directors.
(iv) Resolving possible complaints which, under procedures outlined in previous sections, may be made as a result of possible failures to follow the obligations of the Code of Ethics.
(v) Disclosing, promoting and ensuring observation of obligations pertinent to the Code of Ethics.
3.9. Complaints, investigations and sanctioning procedures
3.9.1. The procedure outlined below is prepared in relation to complaints, investigations, and where necessary, the sanctioning of conduct which violates the norms established in the Code of Ethics.
3.9.2. The procedure is guided by the principles of confidentiality, challenge, immediacy and promptness and will suspend the prescription of potential breaches. Its regulatory principles will be as follows:
(i) Any employee who knows of a possible breach of the Code of Ethics, is obliged to present to the Ethics Committee the facts he considers relevant to said breach, to the best possible degree.
(ii) The communication or notification of the facts and other relevant circumstances will be able to be carried out either in writing, addressed to the Ethics Committee, or in person with the Club’s Director of Human Resources, who will take a statement to be signed by the informant. The identity of the individual who presents any statement will be considered confidential information.
(iii) Assuming that violations of the Code of Ethics arise, the Ethics Committee will file a confidential investigation which may require the collaboration of the individuals concerned. The result will be communicated to the interested parties and in the case that the investigation proves a possible violation of the Code of Ethics, the Executive Committee will be notified in order to bring about measures for sanction or expulsion depending on the case.
3.10. Monitoring and Revision of the Code of Ethics
The present Code of Ethics reflects the practices that, despite not being officially regulated until this point, have been undertaken by the Club. The Code of Ethics will be subject to constant monitoring in order to carry out periodical revision and ensure its adequate adaptation to the conditions at all times.
4. REAL MADRID ETHICS COMITTEE
In the meeting on the 6th of November 2012, the management board confirmed the Code of Ethics that was approved by the Board of Directors on the 8th of June 2012. It was agreed that its formation and the election of members of the Ethics Committee, as outlined in the aforementioned Code of Ethics, would be delegated to the Club’s Board of Directors.
Therefore, the Board of Directors, during their meeting on 23rd of November 2012, agreed that the Ethics Committee would be made up of the following 4 members:
D. Pedro López Jiménez, Vice-President of the management board, President of the Ethics Committee
D. Enrique Sánchez, Secretary of the management board, Chairman of the Ethics Committee
D. José Ángel Sánchez, Director General, Chairman of the Ethics Committee
D. Carlos Martínez de Albornoz, Director of internal auditing and control, Secretary of the Ethics Committee
5. CONTENT AND PROGRAMING OF REAL MADRID TELEVISION
Real Madrid Television ensure that its programs and content, both in internal and external productions, are developed in line with the Values of Real Madrid and adhere to the commitments made in their Code of Ethics.
All broadcast content must respect individual dignity, avoiding any discrimination with regards to gender, race, nationality, religion or any other personal characteristic. Additionally, it will offer particular support and protection to minors and those found to be, for whatever reason, disadvantaged and in need of the help of the community.
Through its content, Real Madrid Television will pay special attention to sport and its promotion in society, particularly amongst youth age groups. It will foster sporting activity as part of education and the learning of values from childhood.
Real Madrid Television will avoid the production of any output that may harm the comprehensive development of children or young people; for example, any content featuring violence, racism, xenophobia, sexual content or anything that goes against the Values of Real Madrid.
Content will however reflect a clear commitment to fighting against issues which are threatening sport: violence in all its forms, racism, xenophobia, all forms of intolerance towards people, harassment of any group, especially children, match-fixing, illegal betting or any form of corruption in general, doping or any threat to the legitimacy of competition, drugs and any damaging or dangerous consumption habits which may be harmful to individuals or youth development.
Real Madrid Television will ensure the emission of high quality content in line with the Values of Real Madrid and the spirit of sport, and ensure it is checked to provide truthful information of the highest quality. The language and audio-visual resources used will adhere to the same principles and values based on respect for individuals and institutions.
6. CONTENT QUALITY COMMITTEE
Content broadcast by Real Madrid Television will be subject to prior assessment by the Content Quality Committee, who will ensure that all programming complies with this Code of Ethics and will also resolve, any conflicts subsequently considered by the audience in relation to the quality of the broadcast content.
The Content Quality Committee will be led by the Real Madrid Communications Director, alongside the Channel Director, the Content Director, and the Production Director of Real Madrid Television.
The Content Quality Committee will maintain strict vigilance over the fulfilment of the present Code of Ethics in its periodical meetings that it uses to decide on daily content and to monitor broadcast material and its impact on the audience.
7. COMMERCIAL COMMUNICATION
Real Madrid Television will offer a platform and socially responsible advertising, always strictly complying with the Code of Ethics.
Real Madrid Television will adhere to good practices for the association and Autoregulation of commercial communication (Autocontrol), with a view to guaranteeing the emission of ethically respectful advertising. The advertising will respect the Advertising Code of Conduct and the Online Ethics of Trust Code defined by Autocontrol, as well as the Autoregulation Code on Television Content and Childhood, adhering to what is established in the autoregulation code about advertising and content in force for television operators, agencies, advertisers and specifically the regulatory codes dedicated the protection of children, commercial communications of gaming activities, advertising for food products directed at children, prevention of obesity and health.
The commercial contents are clearly differentiated from informative content, in order that there exists no confusion with regards to which content is used as publicity.