MADRID: Florentino Pérez survived Real Madrid’s first genuine presidential contest in two decades in the early hours of Monday, securing four more years at the helm but with more than a third of voting members backing a rival who attacked his ownership plans.
The 79-year-old Spanish construction magnate was hailed the winner by Real Madrid TV, while his rival, renewable energy magnate Enrique Riquelme, admitted defeat just over an hour before the official count.
Pérez obtained 65% of the votes, according to the club’s official count, while Riquelme obtained 35% of a total of 33,555 members who voted at Real Madrid’s training ground in Valdebebas, outside Madrid, on Sunday.
“I would like to congratulate Florentino Pérez’s campaign on its victory. Real Madrid will not go another 20 years without elections,” Riquelme told reporters.
Pérez called the election on May 12 despite having two years left in his term, after a second consecutive trophyless season for the 15-time European champions and with archrival Barcelona retaining their La Liga title.
He called the result “extraordinary” in a victory speech at a hotel in the Spanish capital and said Real Madrid had “set an example to the world of transparency and harmony.”
“This has been a great day for Real Madrid. We have won in all areas, that is, in all age groups. And we have achieved the second best result in the history of Real Madrid elections,” said Pérez.
Pérez became president of Real Madrid for the first time in 2000 and had renewed his mandate five times since 2009 running unopposed. The club had not held a formal presidential vote since 2006, when Ramón Calderón won by a narrow margin.
In the run-up to Sunday’s vote, Perez promised to name Benfica coach Jose Mourinho and said he would spend 150 million euros on an unnamed player to be revealed on Tuesday, a fee that would represent a club record.
He also said defenders Ibrahima Konate and Denzel Dumfries would be his first signings if picked.
Benfica acknowledged Perez’s interest in Mourinho in a statement to Portugal’s market regulator CMVM, saying any move to appoint the Portuguese coach would require the payment of €15 million to terminate his contract.
Riquelme had tried to unseat Pérez with promises to sign Erling Haaland and Rodri from Manchester City, while presenting himself as the candidate who would bring members closer to a club that, according to him, had distanced itself from them.
He promised to turn Valdebebas into a social center with a hotel, swimming pools, a gym and a 15,000-capacity stadium for the Real Madrid basketball team that could also host concerts.
His campaign also took aim at Pérez’s proposal, raised last November, to create a subsidiary that would allow outside investors to buy a stake of around 5% of the club. Riquelme stated that he “vehemently rejects” the plan and accused Pérez of wanting to “privatize the club.”
Pérez has said that Real Madrid’s member ownership model would remain intact and that membership would have “real and tangible value.” Any change to the club’s statutes would require approval by an extraordinary general meeting.
Real recorded revenue in 2024-25 of 1.19 billion euros and is valued by Forbes at $6.75 billion, the highest in world football.
