Why it is (almost) impossible to beat Florentino in the polls

BarcelonaFlorentino Pérez's press conference on Tuesday was surprising, chaotic and, at times, grotesque. But the fact that the Real Madrid president, visibly nervous, had a sometimes disorganized speech and made off-topic, derogatory or sexist comments, does not mean he did not have some things clear. It was a campaign event, in which he launched the electoral machinery without prior planning and took the opportunity to disqualify the one who, for some time now, he knows is the only rival who can overshadow him.

This Thursday, the elections at Real Madrid have been officially called. The process followed is the opposite of what Barcelona did at the beginning of the year. If at Camp Nou the deadlines are extended and the participation of the social mass is requested to obtain around 2,500 endorsements, at the Bernabéu only one thing counts: having a lot and a lot of money.

Shortly after returning to power, in the summer of 2009, beginning his second term at the helm of the Madrid club, Florentino Pérez pushed for a statutory reform to tighten the requirements to be president. He sold it to the assembly – and they bought it hook, line, and sinker – as a way to prevent any sheikh or billionaire from gaining control of the club. The reality is that the businessman was shielding his seat in the presidential box. Since 2009 – when he was the only candidate – he has been re-elected without needing to go to the polls, always as the sole option. At the time, a group of members sued for this modification, but they lost in court. And the changes to the sports law, made in early 2022, in which Florentino played a prominent role, ended up vindicating the leader, as the text made it clear that clubs could set their own rules of the game when restricting access to the presidency.

The economic factor and the time factor, key in Madrid's electoral process

For these elections, two things must be taken into account, one of which is the economic factor. The club's statutes make it very clear that anyone who wishes to be president, in addition to gathering a board of between five and 20 people, must present a guarantee corresponding to 15% of the club's expense budget, which amounts to approximately 178 million euros. The fine print is very important. Article 40, section C, points 3 and 4, specifies that the guarantee must be backed by the personal assets of the members of the candidacy, that it must be issued by a Spanish banking entity, that it must be presented in the form of a pre-guarantee, and that the electoral board must have all the documentation available for review.

The second key point is time. And this is where Florentino's strategy is evidentFlorentino's strategy is evidentthe Alicante businessman Enrique Riquelme, president of the energy company CoxEnrique Riquelme, the only opponent with possibilities

In this sea of challenges, the only person who seems willing to cast a shadow over Florentino is the Alicante businessman Enrique Riquelme, president of the energy company Cox, who meets two more requirements: being Spanish and having 20 years of uninterrupted seniority as a member. Riquelme had been working behind the scenes for months and had even met with Jürgen Klopp to propose him as the new coach. He has the money. And the team, too. But he doesn't know if he can take the step or not because, as El Confidencial reported, in the last few hours doubts have arisen in his team, which supposedly includes some former Real Madrid players. The immediacy of the call-up has caught them off guard, and they will make a definitive decision at the weekend.

In the event that Riquelme takes the step and there is a face-to-face with Florentino, the votes would take place within 15 days, at the latest, and postal voting would be enabled. However, the opponent would still have to overcome one last hurdle: popularity, as he is still an unknown person to the social mass. Florentino, therefore, has every chance of winning.