Real Madrid announced on Sunday that Xabi Alonso will replace Carlo Ancelotti as first team coach from today. The two parties signed a three-year contract, which will be valid until June 30, 2028.

Alonso's contract with Leverkusen was originally scheduled to end in 2026, and it was rumored that it contained a buyout clause of about 15 million euros. There are also reports that the two sides reached a "gentleman's agreement" when renewing the contract in 2023, allowing Alonso to return to Real Madrid in the future for an amount lower than the buyout clause.

As for the exact amount, different media outlets have different opinions. Kicker said that Real Madrid paid Alonso between 12 million and 15 million euros for his release clause, while Radio Cope said that the amount was about 8 million euros.

If nothing unexpected happens, Alonso will officially take office before the start of the Club World Cup on June 14. Earlier, there were rumors that Real Madrid's sports director Santiago Solari would temporarily lead the team to compete in the Club World Cup after Ancelotti left office. However, given that the potential income of the event exceeds 100 million euros, Real Madrid finally gave up the experimental personnel arrangement.

Alonso, 43, is the core midfielder of Spain's golden generation. As a player, he won one World Cup (2010) and two European Cups (2008, 2012) with the national team. As for the club level, he has played for Real Sociedad, Eibar, Liverpool, Real Madrid and Bayern Munich. During this period, he played 236 times for Real Madrid, contributed 6 goals and 31 assists, and helped the team win 1 Champions League, 1 La Liga, 2 King's Cups and 1 Spanish Super Cup.

In August 2018, Alonso took up a coaching position more than a year after retiring. He was initially in charge of youth training at Real Madrid and Real Sociedad, and has been the head coach of Leverkusen since October 2022. During his tenure, Alonso led Leverkusen to a record of 89 wins, 32 draws and 19 losses, winning the Bundesliga championship, the German Cup and the German Super Cup.