MADRID, May 21 (Reuters) - Renewables magnate Enrique Riquelme informed Real Madrid's board on Thursday of his intention to run for the club's presidency, according to a source with knowledge of the matter, the first challenge in more than two decades to Florentino Perez's vice-like grip on the world's richest soccer club.
Riquelme, founder of renewable energy company Cox, informed the Real Madrid board of his intention to announce his candidacy on Thursday, the source said, declining to be named due to the sensitivity of the matter. Under electoral rules, he has until Saturday to make a definitive decision on whether he will go ahead with the bid.
Cox's press office declined to comment.
Riquelme founded Cox Energy in 2014 to specialise in solar power in Europe and Latin America, winning significant projects in Chile, Mexico, and Spain. The company manages more than 1.2 GW of energy projects in Spain through Ibox Energy.
Perez, 79, announced new elections this month despite still having two years left on his mandate, after a turbulent season for the record 15-times European champions that brought no silverware and was marked by fighting among players and the abrupt sacking of manager Xabi Alonso. Real's arch-rivals Barcelona retainedthe LaLiga title.
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In a rambling press conference on May 12 to announce the elections, Perez railed against the media and groups he said were trying to take over the club, challenging anyone to compete against him.
In an apparent reference to Riquelme, Perez said "that man who talks with the electric companies and who has a South American accent" was conspiring against the club.
"I want him to present himself with his people so we can talk about football but not behind the scenes doing strange things," Perez added.
One of Cox's largest operations was the acquisition in 2025 of Iberdrola's assets in Mexico for $4.2 billion including debt.
Riquelme also founded Grupo El Sol in Panama, which focused on mining, cement, infrastructure and energy and was the main provider for the project to extend the Panama Canal completed in 2016.
Perez, who according to Forbes has amassed a fortune of $6.8 billion as president of construction group ACS, has served as president of the club for two decades over two stints since 2000, when he defeated Lorenzo Sanz. After standing down in 2006, he returned in 2009 as sole candidate and has since won five consecutive elections unopposed.
Perez in 2012 won the backing of club members for statute changes that make it harder for outsiders to seize control.
Under his stricter rules, presidential candidates must be club members for at least 20 years, up from 10 years previously, and must also personally provide a bank guarantee worth 15% of the club's budget rather than relying on any third party.
In a May 13 open letter to Perez, Riquelme wrote that as the owner of a 75% stake in Cox he had sufficient funds to present himself as a candidate and called for time and space to discuss the future of Real Madrid calmly.
"Our club, after almost twenty years without a participatory electoral process in which members are invited to help shape Real Madrid together, continues to operate under strict deadlines that are not conducive to the kind of participation and open dialogue required by modern democracies," Riquelme wrote.
(Reporting by Charlie Devereux, editing by Victoria Waldersee, Ed Osmond)
