Raúl Martin Presa · History

In June 2018 Rayo Vallecano finished the 2017-18 season as Spanish second division champions and returned to the top flight. It was the club's first league title with Raúl Santiago Martín Presa as owner and president, a post he has held since 2011. Born in Madrid on 10 January 1977, Martín Presa is a Spanish businessman who came to football from the outdoor advertising industry and took control of the Vallecas club while it was in deep financial trouble.

Background and business career

Martín Presa grew up in a football family: his father and his uncle were both players, his father at Atlético de Madrid. He studied business administration at ICADE and at Carlos III University of Madrid. His career developed in private business, mainly in advertising. By May 2011 he sat on the boards of at least nine companies based in the Madrid region and in Seville, and he held eight patents for automated advertising panels.

Buying the club in 2011

In May 2011 he completed the purchase of 98.6% of the shares in Rayo Vallecano, which had belonged to José María Ruiz-Mateos, whose wife Teresa Rivero was the club's president. The deal was struck for a token sum, put by some sources at between 500 and 1,000 euros, because the club carried very heavy debts. A few weeks after the takeover, Rayo voluntarily entered insolvency proceedings, a step the new president described as a legal obligation.

Insolvency and the 2013 Europa League

The first years of his tenure were shaped by the insolvency process. In 2012-13 the team finished eighth in La Liga, a position that carried a Europa League place, but on 14 May 2013 the Spanish federation's licensing committee refused Rayo a UEFA licence because of its finances. The club took the case to a Madrid commercial court, which rejected the request on 8 July 2013, and to the Court of Arbitration for Sport, which did not restore the place either. Martín Presa said at the time that he would have liked CAS to step in. In November 2013 Rayo reached an agreement with 75% of its creditors and emerged from insolvency.

Relegations, promotions and the American venture

At the end of the 2015-16 season the team was relegated to the second division. Around that time the club expanded to the United States with Rayo OKC, a North American Soccer League franchise based in Oklahoma City, which folded in 2016. In August of that year the club sacked the coach midway through the season, even though the team was one point off first place in the American league. The return to La Liga came with the 2018 second division title, but the team finished bottom in 2018-19 and went down again. On 20 June 2021 Rayo won 2-0 at Montilivi to beat Girona 3-2 on aggregate in the promotion play-off final and regained top-flight status.

Clashes with the supporters

His management has produced a strained relationship with part of the fan base. In August 2019 death threats against him appeared at the stadium after season ticket prices were raised. In May 2020 the squad refused to train ahead of the league's restart following the COVID-19 shutdown. In April 2021 he invited Santiago Abascal and Rocío Monasterio of the Vox party to the directors' box, which drew criticism in Vallecas. In 2024, the club's centenary year, the newspaper El Mundo described the celebrations as overshadowed by controversy, and in February 2026 Rayo and Real Oviedo supporters marched together against his running of the club.

Results on the pitch since 2021

Back in La Liga, the team reached the Copa del Rey semi-finals in 2022. In 2024-25 it finished eighth and qualified for the Conference League, its first European qualification in 25 years. In that competition Rayo knocked out Strasbourg in the semi-finals, winning the second leg 1-0 at the Meinau, and played the first European final in the club's history. On 27 May 2026, in Leipzig, Rayo lost the final 1-0 to Crystal Palace, with Jean-Philippe Mateta scoring in the second half.