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, and vacated the presidency on July 16. 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 ($9.07 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