Florentino Pérez has been re-elected as Real Madrid president after defeating rival candidate Enrique Riquelme in the club’s first contested presidential election in 20 years. The club’s electoral commission announced that Pérez secured 65% of the vote with 21,741 ballots, while Riquelme claimed 35% with 11,814 votes.
Pérez, 79, has been Real Madrid president since 2009, and before that between 2000 and 2006, making this his second stint in charge of the club. He proclaimed victory during a speech at a hotel near the Bernabéu stadium, while his rival candidate, Enrique Riquelme, accepted defeat.
It was the first contested election the club had held in 20 years, with Pérez elected unopposed in the previous five electoral cycles in 2009, 2013, 2017, 2021, and 2025. In January 2025, Pérez was previously re-elected as the club’s president until 2029, but following his re-election, Real Madrid failed to win any championship, leading to a call for early elections scheduled for June 2026.
The election results came after 23,593 members had voted at the club’s Valdebebas training ground, representing 31.37% of the total membership of nearly 100,000 members. The polls were open from 9 a.m. until 8 p.m. local time on Sunday as Real Madrid members voted in the club’s first presidential elections in 20 years.
Candidates must meet a strict set of requirements to stand, including having been club members for 20 years and being able to guarantee 15% of the club’s annual budget. The election was called by Pérez last month, looking for a show of support after a second consecutive season without a major trophy.
Pérez has amassed 57 trophies in his two spells in charge of the club, including 6 European Cups in footballer and 3 in basketball, returning Real Madrid to global prominence. An engineer and businessman, Pérez took up the presidency in July 2000 after beating Lorenzo Sanz, who was head of the club at the time.
Pérez has spent over a decade at the helm of the club and has continued its process of modernisation with the construction of the first-team and academy residences located within Ciudad Real Madrid. His term will run through 2030, giving him four more years to lead the club’s future projects and strategic decisions.
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