Born on 9 August 1943 in Madrid, Spain, Sanz played as a goalkeeper in his youth for several minor Madrilenian league teams, including Puerta Bonita. An astute businessman, he made his fortune in real estate and construction.
Sanz was a director of Real Madrid from 1985 to 1995. He then became President of Real Madrid on 26 November 1995 after Ramón Mendoza was forced to resign due to the economic, social, and sporting problems of the club. Sanz tried to turn the club around by bringing in star players like Davor Šuker and Predrag Mijatović with his own money. This led to a long-awaited UEFA Champions League victory, which Real Madrid had not won since 1966, as the club won both the 1998 and 2000 finals. Following the two Champions League trophies, Sanz decided to hold an early election to the club presidency in 2000, but eventually lost to Florentino Pérez. He then tried unsuccessfully twice to regain his former position as the president of Real Madrid, and failed in a bid to take over Parma.
Negotiations with Parma
Between June 2005 and January 2006, Sanz was negotiating with Italian club Parma in Amministrazione Straordinaria to become the club's new owner. Guido Angiolini and Enrico Bondi, the two officers appointed by the Italian government to restore Parma, and its main sponsor Parmalat, were the two people involved in the operations with Sanz. The first time Parma announced negotiations with Sanz was in August 2005. Both President Angiolini and government-appointed administrator Enrico Bondi asked for €27.5 million, but the negotiations were not as smooth as some predicted. Until January 2006, the Sanz family was still transacting business with Bondi and Angiolini, but to no avail. In an interview with Gazzetta dello Sport in January 2006, President Angiolini stated that, "If, by the 16th, the deal with the Sanz family has not been closed, we will set about finding a new buyer." Sanz had seemed the most likely buyer of the club in August 2005 when he made an initial payment of €7.5 million on the full price of €27.5 million. However, he did not pay the outstanding €20 million. Parma administrators stated that after 16 January 2006, the club was free to find other interested buyers as the contract with Sanz expired on 15 January 2006. Other interested buyers included the owner of Spain's Alamak Espana Trade, Russian oligarch Abram Reznikov. The uncertainty over the club's future had become a source of increasing frustration for Parma supporters. The deal with Sanz was a big dilemma for the Parma fans. In some papers, this deal was referred to as "The never ending story." Parma supporters were longing for a positive ending. Sanz visited Parma a couple of times, and he even turned up at the Stadio Ennio Tardini to follow some of Parma's matches in Serie A. Because of his withdrawal from the deal and failure to pay the rest of the sum of €20.5 million, Lorenzo Sanz Senior and Lorenzo Sanz Junior lost much of their credibility.
Later years
Sanz announced in 2006 that he was putting himself up for election once again for the vacant President's position at Real Madrid, losing it to Ramón Calderón. On July 2006, Sanz purchased Málaga CF. He sold the club in 2010 to a Qatari investor for a sum of €50 million. In May 2008, it was reported that he was looking to buy Italian club Bari, and that the Bari owners had given him 10 days to close the deal, which was rumored to be around €15 million.
Personal life
Sanz was the father-in-law of former Real Madrid and Spain national team defender Míchel Salgado, who married his daughter Malula. Sanz's two sons, Paco and Fernando, were also professional footballers. As the owner of Málaga CF, he entrusted Fernando with the presidency of the club. Sanz died in the evening of 21 March 2020 at the age of 76, after testing positive for COVID-19.
