Their life is a joke and they have made a business out of it. “Look at the bathtub, look at the holes that have been made to put more gels. And there is still more (…) Susana, I want that removed now, but now,” said the footballer Joaquín Sánchez referring to his wife, Susana, in his Instagram stories. It is their last argument, but not the only one. In another, the couple argued from their respective Instagram accounts about a lamp that Joaquín criticized for his wife’s dubious taste. These scenes, which could easily be taken from an episode of “The Ropers,” the popular English series from the 70s, belong to the life of Joaquín Sánchez and Susana Saborido. The former Real Betis footballer and his wife have become the new stars of television, taking advantage of the unfiltered marital relationship that they both maintain on social networks and turning it into a program. Together they star in “Emparejados”, Atresmedia’s new space for this season, and they are waiting for the premiere date for the launch of what will be their star program: “Captain in America”. If Joaquín Sánchez caught the attention of the audience with “El Novato”, which he presented while he was still a footballer, after his retirement he seems determined to make television a more than profitable medium. Also for his wife.
Aside from his television business, the footballer manages his assets through companies such as Chino Seventeen SL, the company of which the former striker is the sole administrator. Founded in 2004 to exploit the player’s real estate assets, the company that has just presented its accounts for 2023 has a poor balance sheet, having invoiced 0 euros in the last financial year, declaring losses of 15,344 euros. However, this company has four large properties and its assets amount to 930,000 euros.
New house, red numbers
The red numbers have to do with the house that the family is building. Joaquín, Susana and the couple’s two daughters, Daniela and Salma, will soon leave the 1.8 million euro chalet in the exclusive area of Simón Verde in Mairena del Aljarafe (Seville) where they live, to move to Gelves, a nearby town where the couple bought two farms to build the house of their dreams. The house has been under construction for months on a 600 square metre plot, spread over three floors and almost 1,200 square metres of mansion. Not to mention the 800 square metre property they have in El Puerto de Santa María, where they spend their holidays.
Despite the scant business generated by real estate (his company is simply a holding company), the footballer and his wife make up for it with what they earn by exploiting his image, either through advertising campaigns or through the emoluments he receives for his work on television. The former striker manages his image rights through companies such as Driblo SL, Volea Sport SL or Fenomagen SL, the most used by the Cadiz native. Here his assets far exceed one million euros.
It can be said that the Cadiz native’s television career is more than profitable. Almost more than football, considering that he earned a million euros in fees at Betis. In 2023, Fenomagen SL had a turnover of 4.1 million euros (900,000 euros more than in 2022), of which 604,000 euros were for the payment of salaries. As a result, he declared profits after taxes of 660,000 euros. Fenomagen SL also has 4.6 million euros in assets and a net worth of 1.5 million.
Despite having worked so hard to make the jump to the small screen and having an overflowing activity on social networks, where he has accumulated the astonishing figure of 4.3 million followers, he never forgets his love for football. Despite hanging up his boots last year after 14 seasons at the club of his life, he remains linked to Real Betis Balompié. In 2017 Joaquín bought 11.83% of the shares after investing more than one million euros. He claims not to want a management position, but he actively participates in signings.