Businessman Enrique Riquelme has notified his candidacy for the Real Madrid presidency, marking the first elections with a rival for Florentino Pérez in two decades.
The Alicante native, president of Grupo Cox, sent a letter on Thursday to the Electoral Board announcing his plan to formalize the candidacy on Saturday. In the message, Riquelme stressed his goal to “present a project for the Real Madrid of the future, exciting for all Madrid fans and especially focused on putting the members back as protagonists”.
After this notification, the Board of Directors must validate the candidacy. If approved, elections could be called in early June. Riquelme is also working to secure the required 187 million euro bank guarantee.
Florentino Pérez advanced the call after a press conference in which he pointed to his potential rival. The last elections with multiple candidates took place 20 years ago.
