It's kind of the chicken or the egg argument to me. Now, undeniably, Madrid had considerable advantages domestically because of their association to the Crown. But it's perfectly understandable that previous success begets more money/opportunity, and it's off that early success that Madrid (indeed, all the major clubs in the world) has become a staple at the top of the footballing world. At some point Madrid had to start winning or they'd be no different than any of the other Real teams in Spain. And that success has created La Fabrica and the entire identity of the Club, not just top side team. Real Madrid is a sporting club, much like Barcelona. They compete in multiple sports domestically and across Europe.
City was a mid-table/bottom tier side until Abu Dhabi bought them. Then almost overnight, they became one of the best teams in the world. That's nothing to be proud of, and it should be chastized, IMO. Their only identity was being "Noisy Neighbors" to United prior to Abu Dhabi's money.