Manchester City Consider Legal Action Over Real Madrid Candidate's Haaland and Rodri Claims

Manchester City are considering legal action after a Real Madrid presidential candidate publicly promised to sign Erling Haaland and claimed the striker has a release clause allowing him to move to Spain.

Enrique Riquelme, a 37-year-old renewable energy magnate bidding to unseat Florentino Perez, produced a Real Madrid shirt with Haaland’s name on it during a television appearance on Wednesday and laid out his bold vision.

“He has a release clause and would like to join Real Madrid. If I become president, he will play for Real Madrid,” Riquelme declared.

The response from Haaland’s camp and from City was immediate and uncompromising.

A joint statement from Haaland’s father and his agent dismissed the claims outright, before City moved to shut down the story entirely.

“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.”

In one TV segment, Riquelme had managed to inflame a Premier League powerhouse, drag one of world football’s most valuable forwards into an election battle, and test the limits of campaign showmanship.

He did not stop at Haaland. Riquelme also vowed to bring in City’s midfield lynchpin Rodri, openly identifying him as a cornerstone of his sporting project.

“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.”

That line – “we have spoken to his agent” – will not have gone unnoticed in Manchester either.

Riquelme’s challenge comes at a rare moment of vulnerability for Perez. For the first time in 20 years, the long-serving Real Madrid president does not stand unopposed. Two trophyless seasons have created a vacuum, and Riquelme has dived into it with a campaign built on grand promises and sweeping gestures.

He has pledged vast benefits for club members, including a “members’ city” around the training ground and a commitment to slash annual membership fees by up to 50% if Madrid fail to win the Champions League next season. It is populist, expensive, and designed to jolt a restless fanbase.

His sporting vision also cuts directly across Perez’s plans on the touchline. Riquelme opposes the decision to bring back Jose Mourinho as manager, an appointment that can only be formally sealed if Perez secures re-election. The message is clear: a vote for Perez is a vote for Mourinho; a vote for Riquelme is a different future.

That alternative, Riquelme and his team have hinted, could be Jurgen Klopp. The former Liverpool manager, currently out of work after leaving Anfield, looms over the campaign as the dream candidate.

When asked about Klopp by 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 was careful wording, but the implication was obvious enough for Madrid supporters craving a new era on the bench.

Just under 100,000 Real Madrid members are eligible to vote in Sunday’s election on 7 June, a ballot called by Perez himself in an attempt to renew his mandate after a period of on-pitch frustration and open discontent in the stands at the Santiago Bernabeu. Despite the noise around Riquelme, Perez remains the overwhelming favourite.

Yet this episode has already underlined how brutal and theatrical a Real Madrid election can become. A challenger has used the names of Haaland, Rodri and Klopp as political capital; City have bristled, Haaland’s camp has pushed back, and lawyers may soon be involved.

The votes will decide who runs Real Madrid. The fallout from these promises may decide how far candidates can go when they turn football’s biggest stars into campaign props.