Manchester City Weigh Legal Action Over Riquelme's Haaland Claims
Manchester City are weighing up legal action after Real Madrid presidential candidate Enrique Riquelme brazenly paraded an Erling Haaland shirt on live television and declared he would sign the striker if elected.
Riquelme, a 37-year-old renewable energy magnate bidding to unseat long-standing president Florentino Perez, held up a Madrid jersey with Haaland’s name on the back during a TV appearance on Wednesday and laid out his promise in blunt terms.
“He has a release clause and would like to join Real Madrid. If I become president, he will play for Real Madrid,” he said.
The response from Haaland’s camp and from Manchester City was immediate and emphatic.
In a joint statement, Haaland’s father and his agent dismissed the claims, before City moved to shut the story down completely.
“The stories which have emerged from Spain regarding the future of Erling Haaland are untrue,” the statement read. “There is no chance of this happening and there is no contractual clause to enable it.
“We are considering legal action for the use of our player image in this context.”
The image of a potential Real Madrid president-in-waiting brandishing a Haaland shirt may have played well with some supporters, but it has cut straight across the interests of the English champions, who view the public use of their player’s name and image in an election campaign as a serious line crossed.
Rodri next on Riquelme’s wishlist
Haaland was not the only Manchester City star drafted into Riquelme’s manifesto. The candidate also pledged to sign City’s midfield linchpin Rodri, openly identifying a position he believes Madrid must reinforce.
“He is a great player, in a position where Madrid need to strengthen,” Riquelme said. “We have spoken to his agent. We have to respect his club, but if I'm president he will play for Madrid. I will do everything possible.”
Those comments place another of Pep Guardiola’s key figures at the centre of a presidential race in Spain, dragging City further into a contest they never asked to join.
A rare challenge to Perez’s rule
Riquelme’s bid carries weight because of its timing and its target. This is the first Real Madrid presidential election in 20 years in which Perez does not stand unopposed, a reflection of two trophyless seasons and a restless fanbase at the Santiago Bernabeu.
Just under 100,000 club members will be eligible to vote on Sunday, 7 June, in an election called by Perez himself as he seeks a renewed mandate after a period of on-field frustration and open discontent in the stands. Despite the noise around Riquelme’s campaign, Perez remains the overwhelming favourite to win.
Riquelme, though, has chosen spectacle and giveaways as his route to relevance. His campaign has been built on grand promises: a “members’ city” for fans around the club’s training base, and a pledge to slash annual membership fees by up to 50% if Madrid fail to win the Champions League next season.
He has also set himself firmly against Perez’s decision to bring Jose Mourinho back to the club. That appointment can only be rubber-stamped if Perez secures re-election, turning the coaching position into another key battleground.
Klopp in the crosshairs
Riquelme’s alternative vision on the touchline is equally bold. He and his campaign team have strongly hinted that former Liverpool manager Jurgen Klopp is their prime target for the job.
When asked about Klopp in an interview with The Athletic last month, Riquelme did not hide his admiration.
“Naturally, I would love for profiles of that calibre, and others like them, to coach this club,” he said.
It is a pitch heavy on star power: Haaland, Rodri, Klopp, a rebuilt squad and a reimagined fan experience. For City, though, it is the public appropriation of their players that has hit a nerve.
As the election countdown continues in Madrid, the political theatre at the Bernabeu has spilled across borders and into Manchester’s legal department. Whether Riquelme’s gambles win him votes remains to be seen, but they have already earned him something else: the full, unblinking attention of one of Europe’s most powerful clubs.
