Ruiz-Mateos: The First Viral Phenomenon

Follow José María Ruiz-Mateos, businessman, politician, sports leader and media animal, whose overflowing personality - a mixture of paternalism, religious fervor and Andalusian grace - captivated thousands of Spaniards and made him our first viral phenomenon. Close friends, trusted collaborators and victims of Ruiz-Mateos offer us an unpublished chronicle about his life, from his wine-making origins in Jerez until his decline, after raising and seeing two business empires fall. A plot marked by the expropriation in 1983 of his empire, Rumasa, by the new socialist government. The event marked the political agenda of Spain for decades, when Ruiz-Mateos began a war without truce or quarter against the state. Ruiz-Mateos's is a story without comparison, full of absurdity and nonsense, political and economic corruption, religious fervor, crazy media actions and images that are part of the collective memory of Spain.