In 2009, Florentino Perez returned for a second term as Real Madrid president, having previously held the position between 2000 and 2006. Zinedine Zidane, Ronaldo, Luis Figo and David Beckham arrived during his first spell when the 'Galacticos' policy (basically, signing the world's biggest football stars) was put in place. Now Perez was back in charge and, once again, was not afraid to splash the cash. Barcelona had just swept to the treble, so Real Madrid hit back via the transfer market, grabbing the headlines with some audacious arrivals. Cristiano Ronaldo – breaking a world record fee set by Real earlier that summer – was one of a number of high profile signings, with 80,000 people turning up to see his presentation.
Real Madrid transfers in 2009: The spending spree that saw Ronaldo, Benzema and Alonso arrive
