Florentino Perez has secured another term as president of Real Madrid after winning a landslide victory in the club’s presidential elections late Sunday.
The 79-year-old incumbent, who has led the Spanish giants for 23 years across two separate spells, captured 65 percent of the votes from the club’s 100,000 socio members.
Perez comfortably defeated his 37-year-old challenger, Enrique Riquelme, who had boldly campaigned on a promise to sign Manchester City striker, Erling Haaland. “We have won the elections and will continue working to keep winning titles,” Perez declared during his victory speech.
The election result has immediately cleared the path for a blockbuster managerial return, with Jose Mourinho set to be officially announced as Real Madrid’s new manager as early as Monday.
The Portuguese tactician returns to the Santiago Bernabeu 13 years after his first departure. To secure his services, Real Madrid will reportedly pay a €15 million (₦23.77 billion) release fee to Mourinho’s current club, Benfica.
Expressing his excitement, Perez told supporters he was “proud to welcome back one of the best coaches in the world, a Madridista like Jose Mourinho.”
Mourinho’s return marks a high-stakes gamble for Perez following a disappointing period for Los Blancos, who just finished the 2025/26 season without a major trophy—marking their second consecutive barren campaign.
The polarizing manager previously led Madrid for three seasons starting in 2010, an era defined by a fierce rivalry with Pep Guardiola’s Barcelona.
During that initial stint, Mourinho successfully broke Barcelona’s domestic dominance by capturing one La Liga title, a Copa del Rey, and the Spanish Super Cup.
Speculation regarding Mourinho’s appointment had reached a fever pitch last week after a brief video was shared on the official Instagram account of Perez’s campaign.
In the clip, the Portuguese coach heavily teased his return by appearing in a Real Madrid shirt and simply saying, “Yes.” With the election now settled, Perez is wasting no time pivoting back to his familiar formula of high-profile appointments as he looks to restore the club to its winning ways.
