<p>The 79-year-old Spanish construction magnate was ‌acclaimed as the winner by <em><strong>Real Madrid TV</strong></em>, while his rival, renewable energy tycoon Enrique Riquelme, conceded defeat a little ‌over one hour ahead of the official tally.</p><p>Perez won 65% of the vote, the ‌club's official count showed, while Riquelme took 35% of a total of 33,555 members who voted at ‌Real's Valdebebas training ground on the outskirts of Madrid on Sunday.</p><p><strong>"I would like to ‌congratulate Florentino Perez's campaign on its victory. Real Madrid will not go another 20 years without an election,"</strong> Riquelme told reporters.</p><p>Perez called the election on May 12 despite having two years left on his mandate, after a ‌second-straight season without silverware for the record 15-time European ⁠champions and with arch-rivals Barcelona retaining their LaLiga ‌title.</p><p>He declared the result "extraordinary" in a victory speech at a hotel in the Spanish capital and said ​Real had "set an example to the world of transparency and harmony".</p><p><strong>"This has been a great day for Real Madrid. We have won across the board, that is to ​say, across all age groups. And we have achieved the second-best result in the history of Real Madrid elections,"</strong> Perez said.</p><p>Perez first became Real president in 2000 and had renewed ⁠his mandate five times since 2009 ​by running unopposed. The club had not held a formal presidential vote since 2006, when Ramon Calderon won by a narrow margin.</p><p>In the build-up to Sunday's vote, Perez promised to appoint Benfica manager Jose Mourinho and said he would spend 150 million euros on an unnamed player to be ‌revealed on Tuesday, a fee that would represent a club record.</p><p>He also said defenders Ibrahima Konate and Denzel Dumfries would be his first signings if elected.</p><p>Benfica acknowledged Perez's interest in Mourinho in a statement to Portugal's CMVM market regulator, saying any move to appoint the Portuguese coach would require payment of 15 million euros to terminate his contract.</p><p>Riquelme had tried to unseat Perez with pledges to sign Manchester City pair Erling Haaland and Rodri, while pitching himself as the candidate who would bring members closer to a club he said had drifted away from them.</p><p>He promised to turn Valdebebas into a social hub featuring a hotel, swimming pools, a ‌gym and a 15,000-capacity arena for Real Madrid's basketball team that could also host concerts.</p><p>His ​campaign also targeted Perez's proposal, raised last November, to create a subsidiary that would ‌allow outside investors to buy a stake of around 5% in the club. Riquelme said he "vehemently rejects" the plan and accused Perez of wanting to "privatise the club".</p><p>Perez has said Real's member-owned model would remain intact and that membership would have "a real and tangible value". Any change to the club's statutes would require approval at an extraordinary general meeting.</p><p>Real ⁠posted 2024-25 revenue of 1.19 billion euros and ⁠are valued by <em><strong>Forbes</strong></em> at $6.75 billion, ‌the highest in world football.</p>