The opposition to Florentino did a presentation today about his plans if he takes the presidency of «Los Blancos»
This morning, May 27, Enrique Riquelme held an event at which he presented the cornerstone of his campaign for the presidency of Real Madrid Football Club. The presentation took place in front of a large media contingent, but there was no live press conference during the event itself.
What is Riquelme proposing?
The cornerstone of his project is the development of a massive sports and leisure complex for members in the Valdebebas area, where, according to Riquelme, there are 350,000 square meters of open space that can be utilized for this campus he unveiled today.
In the leisure area, he outlined the creation of an auditorium with a capacity for 1,500 people, mentioned 80 dining areas and open spaces with room for 20,000 people, and giant screens where members can watch matches that, in his words, are away games or when there is no space at the Bernabéu.
He also showcased aquatic spaces, which we understand to include areas with both indoor and outdoor pools, as well as a children’s area.
One of the highlights in the leisure section is the creation, according to his presentation, of a premium hotel where members coming from outside Madrid can stay on match days. Riquelme did not mention accommodation prices at any point, but he did indicate that members cannot be expected to spend 300 or 400 euros just to watch Real Madrid, so it is reasonable to assume that prices will be reduced or, at best, free.
And what about sports?
If the other proposals seemed ambitious, this may be the most surprising one. The opposition to Florentino promised 41 tennis and padel courts, 6 basketball courts, and 11 soccer fields, all of them for Real Madrid members. It has not been specified whether there will be a fee for using the sports facilities, but it is understood that membership will be sufficient, since, in the renderings, the soccer and basketball courts were open to the public.
Additionally, within this massive sports and leisure complex, he announced the creation of a dedicated stadium for the basketball team, with the renderings showing “Real Madrid Arena” as the facility’s name.
In addition to serving as a venue for the basketball club, it would also be used for concerts, a point he took the opportunity to mention, saying things like “here we wouldn’t bother anyone” or “this way we could recoup the 1.7 billion investment, which isn’t possible right now.”
For the women’s team, he has promised to increase the capacity of the Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium to 20,000 seats and ensure that Real Madrid’s women’s players can play their most important matches at the Santiago Bernabéu.
Promises Outside the Sports Complex
In addition to one of the most ambitious projects in the history of sports, Riquelme announced the addition of 10,000 new season-ticket seats, giving priority to the families of current season-ticket holders and promising greater transparency for those on the waiting list, as well as improvements to the spaces and boxes for members.
It is clear that Riquelme’s cornerstone is the members, as he also began his presentation by discussing Real Madrid’s privatization project and how, according to Riquelme himself, members have lost power and decision-making authority at Real Madrid—hence the strategy of the candidate for the Real Madrid presidency is to promise members everything they want in order to win the election.
During the presentation, he made no mention of any new signings coming to the club, whether coaches or players, but he did mention that this is the first of the four pillars on which his candidacy is based. Therefore, in the coming days, we can expect new promises from the man who wants to be the new president of the club.
Do you think his strategy will be effective and that he’ll become president? What do you think of this mega sports and leisure complex?