Own goal for Real Madrid in cross-removal row

The cross was so small that it is possible hardly anyone noticed it was there in the first place.

But now that Real Madrid have removed it from the top of its crown, its absence has certainly been noted, and the world-famous Spanish soccer club is being accused of an own goal.

The cross still appears on logos on the club's website. According to the English edition of the Spanish sports newspaper Marca.com, it has been removed from some Real Madrid products as part of a three-year partnership agreement with the National Bank of Abu Dhabi, the leading bank in the United Arab Emirates.

The UK's Gareth Bale was present at the unveiling of the partnership, when the National Bank of Abu Dhabi credit card that is also a Real Madrid membership card was unveiled, with the cross edited out of the logo.

This is understood to have been agreed in order to make the club attractive to a Muslim fanbase.

Real Madrid's little cross atop its crown was removed once before, in 2012, in a partnership with an Emirates resort. At that time The Blaze noted that Real Madrid was founded in 1902, is the pride of all Los Madridistas and, according to a Harvard University study, is the most popular team in the world, with more than 228 million supporters.

The Blaze said the 1920-31 logo featuring the crown was approved by King Alfonso XIII of Spain in 1920. The crown was removed from the logo between 1931-1941 and returned after the Spanish Civil War ended.

Florentino Pérez, president of Real Madrid said that the logo change was agreed to by Real Madrid, which is the world's wealthiest sports team, valued at nearly $3.5 billion, in order to avoid offending Muslim sensibilities.

Fox News reported him as saying: "I know that the local people experience every match in a special way and that our links with the UAE are constantly growing stronger. This agreement will help the club to keep conquering the hearts of followers in the United Arab Emirates."

The Algemeiner, the fastest growing Jewish newspaper in America, reported the removal of the cross as a "spillover of religious intolerance from the Middle East into Europe."

Algemeiner said: "Real Madrid's decision to cave into Muslim religious intolerance comes at a time of growing concern for Christians in the Middle East, where Islamic State terrorists have massacred and ethnically cleansed ancient Christian communities in Iraq and Syria. While Abu Dhabi, the largest of the seven members of the United Arab Emirates, is comparatively more tolerant, a recent State Department report highlighted several violations of international standards on religious freedom."

The State Department report said: "The government prohibits proselytizing and the distribution of non-Islamic religious literature under penalty of criminal prosecution, imprisonment, and deportation..The law prohibits churches from erecting bell towers or displaying crosses on the outside of their premises; however, the government does not always enforce this law, and some churches display crosses on their buildings."

Algemeiner added: "It is not yet clear whether the UAE will require Ronaldo, Real Madrid's top striker, to change his Christian name – which is, appropriately, Cristiano."