Florentino Pérez wins chaotic elections at Real Madrid

MadridFlorentino Pérez will continue to preside over Real Madrid after a chaotic night regarding the count. Despite the challenge of 1,000 mail-in votes in favor of Florentino, which caused the count to begin after 9 PM, the constructor emerged victorious from an election decided in the early hours, without debates and with little information. Pérez boasted to the press at 1 AM after defeating Enrique Riquelme at the end of a long day where information was lacking at times. In fact, while the count of the first election in 20 years at the club was underway, Madrid's television channel was showing past Champions League finals. And when Florentino announced his victory, he did so without providing official figures. At 2:12 AM, the club published the final results: Florentino won with 21,741 votes, 65% of the support, and Enrique Riquelme received 11,814 votes, 35%.

"We have won in all polling stations, meaning in all age groups. And we have achieved the second-best result in history. It is an extraordinary result and could have been better if they hadn't annulled 1,000 votes, which we will appeal," said Florentino. "We have set an example of coexistence and transparency," he added, even though no one knew the official figures at the time. Accompanied by his board of directors, family, and members, the leader was received with applause and shouts of "Florentino, Florentino." During the press conference, Jose Mourinho also had his moment of glory. Through a video, he said: "Yes. Florentino Pérez has won the elections."

In any case, Florentino Pérez has achieved a bitter victory with 65% of the votes, almost the same percentage that the poll conducted by El Chiringuito already indicated. (64.1%).Enrique Riquelme would be left with the remaining 35% after surprise elections were called with very little time. Good enough figures for Riquelme, who would have managed to make himself known in a few days and become the visible face of a new opposition against Florentino, who had been in charge with a certain ease for years.

Riquelme, ready to lead the opposition

the first presidential elections in 20 years.In this way, the current leader will continue for four more years at the helm of the white club, but the members have used the ballot boxes to give him a warning – it should be remembered that Florentino won the last elections with more than 90% of favorable votes, even though he had no rival. This year yes, a rival who has requested to annul many postal votes because they had a double stamp. "Despite the difficulties [in voting], Real Madrid has won today,” stated Riquelme. The candidate in the Real Madrid elections was referring to participation. Of the 70,000 members entitled to vote, 33,000 have done so, placing participation at 47%, according to sources close to the candidacies.

Symbolic day

However, Real Madrid has experienced a symbolic day with the first presidential elections in 20 years. The two candidates, Enrique Riquelme and the current leader, Florentino Pérez, have voted at the Valdebebas Sports City, on the outskirts of Madrid, as the Santiago Bernabéu is one of the chosen venues to receive the Pope of Rome.

A "last chance"

At 5 p.m. participation was already 31%, but from then until the polls closed, the Madrid facilities have become a hive of activity, many with Real Madrid shirts. Groups of friends, couples, and entire families have gone to vote almost at the last minute, which already suggested that final participation would be much higher.

Not all members agreed on their vote, but they did agree that it has been a "historic" day. So much so that some have even driven 400 km to vote. This is the case of Juan and María, father and daughter, who came from Cartagena, Murcia. Both have voted for the first time: she, a member since birth, has just turned 18. And he could not vote in the 2006 elections of Ramón Calderón. "I wouldn't have missed it for the world," Juan confessed after voting. Although he has closely followed the election campaign, he was clear about his vote: "All teams have bad periods, but Florentino Pérez has given us [many victories]. I also don't trust the new candidate [Enrique Riquelme]. In fact, I hope that when there are elections again, there will be, in any case, more candidates."

Daniel Martínez also wanted to give Florentino an "opportunity": "I became a member thanks to him, in 2000. He deserves one last chance." Martínez, however, admits that Enrique Riquelme has fought hard: "I didn't expect him to be so close behind," he confesses. From the environment of this candidate, they explained that exit polls gave him 45% of favorable votes at one in the afternoon.

"New" ideas

It was precisely Riquelme's campaign that convinced other members to opt for him: "He has followed a clean strategy and his dealings with the press have been very different [from Florentino's]," says Jesús. Julián, a member for 47 years, agrees, expressing himself forcefully against Florentino: "He is a dictator [...]. Real Madrid is asleep because of him," he stated after voting.

Riquelme has persuaded the members until the last moment. During this Sunday, in front of the doors of the Sports City, a group of young boys were handing out invitations to the members to follow the results at a party organized by the candidate himself, while buses with the slogan Legacy and future were parading up and down.

With his campaign, the businessman born in Cox (Alicante, 1989) has tried to put an end to the reign of the veteran Florentino Pérez. However, his lack of experience has not been seen as a drawback by those who have voted for him: "Madrid needs a change [...] It's not about him being young, but about him bringing new ideas," added Julián. To present himself, the president of the energy company Cox has managed to back a personal fortune of over 187 million euros and has surrounded himself with former players such as Iker Casillas, Del Bosque, Raúl or Hierro to try to stop Florentino, who will sign Mourinho as coach, while he has promised a new star, " the most expensive in history," for the team.

A controversial table president

Beyond the annulment of mail-in votes, the day has unfolded without major incidents, with the exception of the controversy that arose over the presence of Carlos Clara as president of an electoral board. Clara, a fan with a violent past and linked to the far-right, was convicted in 2025 for a serious offense of assault and battery, as he had assaulted a Real Madrid fan outside the stadium.