On the day Florentino arrived in Leeds, Leeds United were playing an FA Cup quarter-final match.
And it just so happened to be a home game: Leeds United vs. Manchester United.
This was bound to be a highly anticipated showdown.
Alongside Florentino Pérez and his ever-present personal assistant Manuel Redondo, Real Madrid CEO José Sánchez and Vice President Butragueño had also made the trip.
Gao Shen arranged for them to stay in the city center of Leeds, not far from Leeds United's Amazon Stadium.
After a short rest upon arrival, they left the hotel and headed to Leeds United's home ground.
Heading south from the city center, one could already see Leeds United's AXA Centre and Amazon Stadium in the distance.
Since its completion, this building had become a landmark of Leeds United.
Back when the Amazon Stadium was completed, Real Madrid had been invited to play a friendly match for the opening ceremony. Florentino had attended that match, but at the time, Elland Road Stadium, located to the east of the Amazon Stadium, was still being demolished, and the surrounding area was chaotic.
Now, however, the shopping malls and pedestrian streets were mostly completed, and the building facades were long finished.
From a distance, the stadium, pedestrian street, and shopping mall formed a seamless, flowing line. The view was truly spectacular.
"Norman Foster is really amazing," José Sánchez exclaimed from afar.
Florentino nodded slightly, but behind his glasses, his eyes were filled with undisguised envy.
The Bernabéu was too small. It didn't give him enough room to expand. If it had, and if Real Madrid could have done what Leeds United had, they would certainly have been more successful.
The reason was simple: the Bernabéu was located in the very center of the Spanish capital.
"Gao Shen is very shrewd. Back then, everyone thought building such a training base and stadium was entirely unnecessary. Now, all those who were waiting for him to fail are probably feeling ashamed of themselves," Florentino said with a chuckle.
He had already decided that Gao Shen's plan held great potential.
The combination of Norman Foster, Leeds United in the Premier League, and top academic cooperation was a unique selling point. It was like creating a major intellectual property in itself, capable of instantly drawing global attention.
Just imagine the development potential surrounding such a desirable IP. From project initiation to launch, from progress updates to award recognitions, it could continuously generate media buzz. Even occasional achievements could attract significant attention.
And just from the sponsorships drawn in by this buzz alone, how much of the cost could be recouped?
The irony was, those ordinary people who questioned the project had no idea how the world really worked.
They clearly didn't have much money in their own pockets, yet they were always eager to give advice to the wealthy on how to invest or run businesses. Wasn't that just laughable?
Take Gao Shen's training base and stadium as an example. Florentino believed that while the training base might have been built on a whim, the stadium project, along with the surrounding commercial street and shopping mall, must have been supported by professional third-party research.
With such a massive investment, wouldn't it be normal to pay a bit more for expert analysis?
And the results clearly weren't bad. Otherwise, Gao Shen wouldn't have gone ahead with it.
Now that the stadium was completed, Leeds United's matchday revenue had multiplied several times, surpassing 100 million pounds and helping the club solidify its status as a top-tier team.
The shopping mall and pedestrian street had long been leased to the Westfield Group, which was expected to bring in at least 30 to 40 million pounds annually in rental income. Who could still say the project wasn't profitable?
It had turned out to be a massive success.
And the most incredible part?
Gao Shen used Leeds United's own money to build the training base and stadium, then turned around and leased them back to the club, collecting a hefty sum in rent each year.
In essence, Leeds United helped him build everything, then paid him to use it — and without a discount.
Calling that profound was putting it mildly. It was basically getting something for nothing.
"Honestly, if all head coaches were as shrewd as him, none of us would survive," Florentino sighed, both amused and exasperated.
Over the years, he had met countless people, but Gao Shen remained the most mysterious and difficult to understand.
José Sánchez and Butragueño both nodded in agreement.
Profound. Truly unfathomable.
...
The match was scheduled to kick off at 7:55 p.m.
Gao Shen had reserved a VIP box to host Florentino and his party. They could dine inside, and a dedicated chef was arranged to serve them, so they arrived at the Amazon Stadium early.
To their surprise, the area was already crowded both inside and out when they arrived.
Although the shopping mall and commercial street hadn't officially opened yet, an Apple Store had already moved into a prominent position.
It was said that Apple opened a store here for two reasons. First, there was indeed a strong market. Second, Norman Foster had always been the lead designer for Apple's official stores and was also responsible for the design this time.
"If I had this kind of wealth and these assets, I wouldn't bother with anything else. I'd just lie down and sleep," Manuel Redondo sighed.
Standing on the commercial street between the Amazon Stadium and the shopping center opposite, one could see that the three complexes shared a unified architectural roof.
The design was truly masterful.
"That's why you'll never become profound," José Sánchez teased with a laugh.
"Why not?" Redondo retorted, visibly annoyed.
Was it a crime to indulge in a little daydreaming? Couldn't he just imagine himself in a profound role for once?
"It's just like with top superstars. Many people think signing them is a huge risk because of the money, but that's not the case. The fact that they can become superstars is already the best guarantee of their value," Florentino said with a smile, explaining the logic to Redondo.
"Once they reach that level, they'll never settle. They'll do everything they can to become even better."
Butragueño, a former professional footballer himself, fully agreed with this view.
The group chatted and laughed as they reached the stadium's interior.
Gao Shen had arranged for staff to receive them, and they were immediately welcomed inside.
Outside the VIP room, Gao Shen was already waiting with Su Qing, Gao Ming, Fernando Lucas, Borrell, and others.
They exchanged greetings naturally as they met.
In particular, young Gao Ming was already showing the charisma of a protagonist.
After all, he was now the most popular young player at Real Madrid.
Florentino had previously visited the Amazon Stadium and praised its facilities — not just the circular screen, but also the vast retail space, which would greatly boost Leeds United's matchday revenue.
As the host, Gao Shen had arranged for a Spanish chef to cater to Florentino and his entourage.
Although both sides understood the true purpose of the visit, they tacitly avoided talking business immediately.
Gao Shen had told Florentino ahead of time not to discuss anything yet. First, they would tour Leeds United's training base, where Gao Shen would demonstrate the services his team could offer, along with the supporting hardware and software infrastructure.
Demonstrating capability first, then gradually moving into negotiations, showed strong self-assurance.
"Your attendance tonight is quite impressive."
While waiting for the chef to prepare the meal, José Sánchez couldn't help but comment on the crowd.
"The stadium will be full tonight," Lucas replied confidently.
"For an FA Cup quarter-final?" José Sánchez asked, clearly surprised.
Though it was a clash between two heavyweights, it was still a domestic cup match. And it didn't seem like Leeds United would field their strongest lineup.
"Our lowest attendance this season was around 60,000," Lucas replied.
José Sánchez and Butragueño were genuinely shocked by this number.
The stadium's total capacity was only 67,000, and their lowest attendance was still 60,000?
"You drew that many for a League Cup game?" José Sánchez asked, still in disbelief.
Lucas smiled and nodded. "It was the first home game of the League Cup."
There was nothing more to say after that.
All anyone could say was that Leeds United's home match operations were genuinely top-class.
And Premier League fans were indeed passionate.
"So your matchday revenue this season should hit a new high," José Sánchez remarked.
Of course, Real Madrid wouldn't envy Leeds United too much. Their membership fees and matchday revenue reached around 170 million euros per season, with membership fees alone accounting for between 1,000 and 14 million euros.
In other words, Real Madrid's pure matchday revenue each season was around 150 million euros.
Leeds United could still grow in the next two years, but the pace would slow down and eventually plateau.
That was the nature of matchday revenue.
It was a very stable income stream, largely unaffected by on-pitch performance, making it a core component of any club's financial structure.
Of course, missing the Champions League meant losing several home games, so there would be some impact.
Like Real Madrid. If they failed to qualify for the Champions League next season, their matchday revenue might actually fall behind Leeds United's.
And from the current situation, Real Madrid's chances of finishing in the league's top four weren't looking good.
This was exactly why Florentino and his team were so eager to meet Gao Shen.
Although Gao Shen hadn't yet met with members of the opposition faction on Real Madrid's board, Florentino must have been quite anxious.
If Gao Shen sided with the opposition, it would be a devastating blow to Florentino's position as chairman.
"Manchester United's form has improved since changing managers. Solskjaer took over from Mourinho, and the results have picked up. Since they've got nothing to fight for in the league, they'll probably go all out in the FA Cup," Butragueño said about tonight's match.
"Exactly," Fernando Lucas nodded with a smile. "Changing managers always brings a brief spark, but that spark already faded. The change happened back in December."
"More importantly, Solskjaer's tactics have started to take shape over the past few months. Once they're stable, it's not hard to study them and make targeted adjustments."
After a short pause, Lucas smiled confidently. "Sometimes, football matches are actually quite simple."
The Real Madrid executives exchanged bewildered glances.
Simple?
Come on.
Real Madrid had so many star players, and yet they couldn't even crack the top four...
(To be continued.)