In a wide-ranging conversation with MARCA, he positioned his campaign around three central pillars: opposition to any form of privatisation, a complete overhaul of governance and transparency, and a sports structure with a professional sporting director at its core.
Riquelme, 43, is the executive chairman of Cox Energy Group, a renewable energy and infrastructure company with nearly 14,000 employees across 37 countries. He is member number 43,858 of the club and has held seats at the Bernabéu for more than 20 years. He personally guaranteed 100 per cent of the candidacy's financial bond — worth approximately €180 million, equivalent to 15 per cent of the club's reported budget — through his own assets, after Banco Santander and BBVA both declined to provide the guarantee. The backing was ultimately provided by Scotiabank and Andbank España.
He was careful to separate his project from any personal rivalry with Florentino Pérez.
"Florentino Pérez is the best president in Real Madrid's history. He transformed the club, brought the best players, built the legacy. But cycles come to an end. We are not here to compete with a person. We are here to propose a different plan."
The centrepiece of that plan is what Riquelme describes as returning the club to its members.
"The main promise is governance and transparency. The member must feel part of the club again, without privatisation."
He cited the absence of presidential elections since 2006 as evidence of a structural problem that goes beyond any one period of leadership: "Twenty years without elections. I ask myself — what does being a member of Real Madrid give you, beyond a Christmas card, a birthday message and a 15 per cent discount on shirts? That cannot be the sum total of what it means to belong to this club."
On the sporting side, Riquelme confirmed that significant signings will be announced if the candidacy succeeds, without naming specific targets. He was equally clear that a professional sporting director would be appointed — a role that does not currently exist in a formal capacity at the club.
"The head coach cannot also be the sporting director. These are different profiles and different stages. We need to professionalise that structure."
He also pointed to the youth academy as a long-term priority, drawing an implicit contrast with Barcelona's ability to fill the Spanish national team through La Masia.
"We need to recover the values that the club has always stood for and make sure talent comes through the system again."
On Madrid's reputational challenges — including the ongoing Negreira case, the absence from the Ballon d'Or ceremony and the collapsed Super League ambitions — Riquelme was pointed: "We cannot be fighting with everyone. The club has to be respected, not feared. Those are very different things."
The Electoral Board has 24 hours to assess the candidacy and set a date for the vote, which must be called within 15 days of approval.