The partnership that will scare Europe moved a step closer after Jose Mourinho said he was likely to leave Inter Milan.
Madrid have long been linked with a move for Mourinho but that speculation has peaked over the last few months with the Spanish giants struggling to justify the huge on-field investment they made last summer.
Under returning president Florentino Perez, Madrid spent around £217million (250million euros) on new players but they ended up trophyless for the second successive campaign after being pipped to the Primera Division title by Barcelona and suffering disappointing early exits from the Champions League and Copa del Rey.
Coach Manuel Pellegrini, the man tasked last summer with taking Madrid back to the top of the tree both in Spain and in Europe, is still officially in the Bernabeu hotseat, but his time in charge may now just be days away from ending.
The favourite to replace the Chilean has always been the hugely-successful Mourinho, and although there is nothing confirmed, the Portuguese's comments following the Champions League win over Bayern Munich suggests that a move to Madrid is now a probability rather than a possibility.
"The Champions League I won at Porto (2004) was my last game there and this time it will almost certainly be my last game for Inter," Mourinho said after becoming only the third coach in history to win the European Cup with two different clubs.
"I want another challenge in my career," he told Italian television station RAI.
"I want to become the only coach to win the Champions League with three different clubs.
"It's not definite that I'll go but I want new risks, new experiences, and now is the moment to decide."
Mourinho, who suggested he will be meeting with Perez after the weekend, did not go as far as to say he would definitely be in charge of Madrid next season, though.
"I don't know the (Madrid) project yet, so I have to hear the project, but at the moment I am not the coach of Real Madrid; I am the coach of Inter and a very proud coach of Inter," he said.
"Inter remains an option and I have a fantastic family here, but Real is the best option I have.
"The percentage of me leaving is higher than that of staying."
Should Mourinho decide to move to Madrid then it could spell bad news for the rest of Europe.
Madrid have won a record nine European Cups down the years but they have barely made a ripple in the competition in recent times, being knocked out at the last-16 stage in each of the last six years.
This year's elimination at the hands of Lyon was particularly painful as, aside from their huge outlay last summer, this season's final was held at their Bernabeu stadium.
Madrid have also surrendered domestic superiority to arch rivals Barcelona, who followed up an unprecedented six-trophy haul in 2009 with another Primera Division title this season.
In the last seven years, Madrid have won just two major trophies and in that time have had 10 different coaches.
However, that could all change if Mourinho takes over.
Virtually everything the outspoken 47-year-old has touched as a coach has turned to gold - or rather silver - winning trophies with Porto, Chelsea and now Inter, who this season he helped become the first Italian team ever to win the treble.
It therefore stands to reason if Mourinho does decide to switch to Madrid then silverware will follow, especially with the likes of Cristiano Ronaldo at his disposal and a president who has shown time and again he is willing to splash the cash in the pursuit of success.
Speaking about Madrid following the Champions League final, Mourinho, perhaps tellingly, said: "It is an enormous club, a club that wants the same as me; I want to win, I want to feel important, I want to keep winning."
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