Real Madrid supporters venting their fury at recent poor performances have been echoing a centuries-old practice that originated in Spanish bullfighting.

During a La Liga game against Levante at the Bernabeu on January 17, thousands of white handkerchiefs were waved aloft by Madrid fans as a public show of protest against their club’s players, coach, and president.

The collective outpouring of anger followed the previous week’s painful Supercopa de Espana final defeat by Clasico rivals Barcelona in Saudi Arabia, and a humiliating Copa del Rey exit at second-division Albacete.

On their return to their home ground, Madrid’s players — especially Vinicius Junior, Jude Bellingham and Federico Valverde — were regularly whistled, while there were also jeers for new coach Alvaro Arbeloa, as well as chants calling for long-serving president Florentino Perez to resign, even as the team beat relegation-threatened Levante 2-0.

¡EL BERNABÉU EXPLOTÓ EN SILBIDOS! ⚪️💥

Los hinchas del Real Madrid demostraron su disconformidad con el equipo al término del primer tiempo.

👉🏼 Por ahora, empata ante Levante.#LaLigaEnDSPORTS#RealMadridLevanteUD pic.twitter.com/BwijcqrJ0k

— DSPORTS (@DSports) January 17, 2026

The most visually arresting part of the display was seeing the super-modern remodelled stadium covered in a sea of white, in a communal gesture reflecting back to before the sport of football was codified and professionalised.

Spanish sports historian Angel Iturriaga says the practice of waving the white handkerchiefs, in its original context, was actually a way of showing appreciation.

“It comes from bullfighting, which from the 18th century well into the 20th century was the most popular mass spectacle in Spain,” he tells The Athletic.

“Spectators who felt a bullfighter had performed well waved white handkerchiefs to ask for him to receive the (dead bull’s) ear, or two ears, or even a tail, which is the highest honour.”

As football became Spain’s most popular mass spectacle in the 1950s, with superstars Alfredo di Stefano, Ferenc Puskas and Paco Gento helping Madrid to win the first five European Cups, supporters attracted from the bullring to the stadium brought the practice — known as a panolada — with them.

“Football fans originally waved their handkerchiefs to show their appreciation of a great play, or especially a great goal,” Iturriaga says.

“When I went with my father in the 1980s, he always had a handkerchief ready to take out. But in football, unlike bullfighting, it was also used to protest a bad game by the players, or we want to get rid of the coach, or we’re against the board. Or, very often in Spain, against the referees. These panoladas are usually accompanied by whistles.”

Alfredo Relano, former editor of Madrid-based sports newspaper Diario AS and the author of 10 books about Spanish football, tells The Athletic that white handkerchiefs were first waved at the Bernabeu in recognition of an outstanding piece of play, but over time have become more commonly used when something is going wrong.

“I remember a panolada at the Bernabeu in November 1964 when Amancio (Amaro) dribbled all the way up the pitch and scored a really great goal against Barcelona,” Relano says.

“But it is generally more as a protest when the fans are unhappy with how things are going. There were very strong panoladas during Miguel Munoz’s final years as coach (in the early 1970s), when the team was doing badly.”

In the mid-20th century, most Spaniards carried a white cloth handkerchief in their pocket, but that is less commonly the case these days. Today’s supporters may have rummaged in drawers at home to find one to bring to the stadium, while others used a white match programme or tissues.

It is not something unique to Real Madrid. Panoladas can happen at many clubs across Spain. Barcelona fans waved white handkerchiefs in protest during current president Joan Laporta’s first term in charge in 2008. Recent weeks have also seen similar protests from supporters at Athletic Club’s San Mames and Valencia’s Mestalla.

However, panoladas remain most identified with the Bernabeu, whose stands are filled with Spanish capital residents used to experiencing the best in all areas of their lives, according to Relano.

“Panoladas do not happen just at Real Madrid, but it’s true that at Madrid you see them more,” Relano says. “Madrid fans are the most demanding and the quickest to show their discontent. They come from the capital city, they’re used to the best bulls, the best opera, the best of everything.”

You need to come prepared if you’re going to protest properly (Denis Doyle/Getty Images)

Real Madrid are one of just four Spanish professional football clubs owned by their socio members (along with Barcelona, Athletic Club, and Osasuna). Bernabeu patrons especially believe they are not passive spectators, but active participants in the event, with a responsibility to demand the highest standards of players and executives who work for them. Often, panoladas come not when the team lacks talent, but when players do not show the required commitment and dedication.

“The Real Madrid fan at the Bernabeu feels himself part of the spectacle, just like at the bullfight,” Relano says.

“They have the right to judge what they are being offered. Fan anger erupts not just because the team has lost a particular game, but because the players, or the club, are lacking honour and dignity.”

That idea of Madrid fans seeing themselves as the ultimate protectors of their club’s honour was present during the recent Bernabeu protests. Among those whistled most loudly were the players who supporters believed had not been fully supportive of their former coach, Xabi Alonso. Perez was also targeted, having allowed media speculation over the coach’s future for months.

“There was an idea that the players had torpedoed their coach, while the club hierarchy had circulated rumours about him being sacked,” Relano says.

“Someone they viewed as a good person was publicly tortured in an ugly way. That was why the panolada was so strong. And the whistles for the players viewed as most guilty: Valverde, Bellingham and Vinicius. And the shouts of ‘Florentino, resign’.”

The panolada against Levante also came soon after club president Perez proposed a historic change to the club’s ownership structure. This would allow private investment for the first time, making some Madrid socios worry their power will be diluted.

“The atmosphere at La Liga stadiums, Madrid and Barcelona above all, has changed, with so many tourists these days,” Relano says.

“But the protests were very strong, due to a feeling that ownership of the club is being taken away from the socios. Florentino might believe the whistles were for the players, but the shouts of ‘Florentino Out’ would affect him.”

Panoladas often draw immediate responses. After the game against Levante, Madrid’s next match at the Bernabeu was a 6-1 Champions League victory over Monaco, and they followed that with an impressive victory at fourth-placed Villarreal in La Liga.

However, Arbeloa’s side then slumped to an embarrassing 4-2 defeat in their final Champions League group game at Benfica on January 28. That was followed by more whistles and handkerchiefs during a home game against Rayo Vallecano, when Madrid needed a stoppage-time Kylian Mbappe penalty to beat opponents who ended the game with nine players.

“A panolada, and such loud whistles, usually provokes a reaction from the players,” Relano says.

“But if the ingredients are not there (players for a good team), or there is not a good team spirit, it usually does not last very long.

“Also, players now live in an ivory tower — they no longer bump into fans in a restaurant, or even talk to journalists. So maybe the fans’ protests affect them less.”