Fernando Romay cannot collect full pension due to amateur era status

Fernando Romay, an icon of Spanish basketball, cannot collect the 100% of the retirement pension that corresponds to him after a career with Real Madrid and Olympic appearances. At 66 years old, he explained that he is missing four years of contributions and will not be able to retire with the maximum pension until he reaches 70.

Appearing on the LaSexta program Salvados, Romay detailed a vulnerable situation shared by other former Olympians, including gymnast Almudena Cid and skier Lola Fernández Ochoa. Romay explained that while he can retire, he cannot collect 100% of what he would be entitled to because his club did not have him insured for a large part of his career.

If they contributed for me, they would declare me a professional, and I couldn’t go to the Olympic Games, nor to the Europeans, nor with the National Team, Romay said during the broadcast.

This regulatory situation affected a generation of competitors who represented Spain at the 1980 Moscow Olympics and the 1984 Los Angeles Games.

The Personal Cost of Amateur Status Restrictions

The lack of coverage also had an impact on personal life. Romay recalled paying 300,000 pesetas for medical care when one of his daughters suffered a severe allergic reaction to mushrooms and fungi when she was little. Because they lacked coverage, visits to public facilities like the Hospital de La Paz in Madrid resulted in a bill.

The shortfall extends beyond Romay’s household. Several members of the 1984 Olympic basketball team—including Corbalán, Llorente, Solozábal, Margall, Epi, Fernando Arcega, Beirán, Andrés Jiménez, Juan de la Cruz, and Fernando Martín—face similar problems. Juan de la Cruz, who was 132 times international, expressed frustration over the situation on the same broadcast, stating that he has to cry for a pension.

Romay noted that there are people receiving the minimum, with some former top-flight athletes receiving pensions of 600 or 700 euros, forcing them to rely on their children for help.

Legislative Shifts and the December 2026 Pension Adjustments

The Spanish system prevented at least a thousand athletes from beginning to contribute to Social Security until the mid-90s. It was not until 1993 that basketball players could begin to contribute and be part of Social Security, when restrictions on professionalism in basketball were eliminated at the Olympic Games.

To address the situation of the 1,004 athletes who have filled out the form to identify those affected, the government published Real Decreto 739/2026 in the Official State Gazette (BOE). The regulation allows former professional athletes to recognize as contributed the years worked before their integration into the General Social Security Regime. The rule applies to periods developed from March 15, 1980, to cutoff dates that vary by discipline (cyclists until 1992, basketball until 1993, handball until 1997, and other sports until 2003), with football players excluded.

The adjustment is not automatic.

The administrative window opens on December 25, 2026, when the Social Security administration will allow former professional athletes to recognize the years worked to reach the minimum for a contributory pension or increase its amount.