Florentino Pérez reportedly threatened to leave the Metropolitano during the Madrid derby after learning that Enrique Riquelme had been invited to the presidential box. The Real Madrid president was angered by the presence of his former electoral rival, but stayed after those around him calmed him down.
Florentino Pérez reportedly threatened to leave the Metropolitano after learning that Enrique Riquelme had been invited to the presidential box for the Madrid derby. The Real Madrid president was said to be so angry that people around him had to calm him down. He stayed and watched Atlético win 2-1.
Paco González revealed the episode on Tiempo de Juego on Cadena COPE. Juanma Castaño later gave more details on El Partidazo. According to the COPE account, Pérez said he would leave if he met Riquelme inside the box. ABC reported his words as: "¿Pero quién le ha invitado? Si me lo encuentro, yo me voy del estadio".
According to ABC, Pérez reacted to the invitation by asking who had invited Riquelme and saying: «Si me lo encuentro, yo me voy del estadio».
The dispute centred on one guest.
Enrique Riquelme was the candidate Florentino Pérez defeated in the Real Madrid presidential election. His presence at the Metropolitano turned an invitation into a confrontation involving the current Madrid president and a former electoral rival. The tension was greater because Riquelme was in the VIP area, not among ordinary spectators.
Pérez had gone to Atlético's stadium because he has a very good relationship with Enrique Cerezo. He reportedly learned about Riquelme's invitation during the directors' lunch in the ante-box before the match. Juanma Castaño described the reaction as a major scene over Riquelme's presence.
Enrique Riquelme is also known outside football as the chairman of Cox and an entrepreneur. El Mundo reported that he had recently been in the news over the transfer of his patrimonial structure to Panama, adding a business dimension to the profile of Pérez’s former electoral rival.
The reports do not say that Pérez left the stadium. They say people calmed him down and that he remained in the box for the match. ABC also reported that Riquelme stayed in the box and watched the derby. The threatened departure therefore became a private confrontation rather than a visible exit during the game.
The incident happened before kick-off, not during the match. Mundo Deportivo repeated the account that Pérez had to be calmed down before staying in the box until the final whistle. The setting was the presidential box, where formal hospitality and football politics came together before Atlético's 2-1 victory.
Riquelme was not described as a spectator in the stands. He was an invited guest in the presidential box. Pérez was there because of his relationship with Cerezo. The result was a clash over who should share that space.
Football power struggles can turn a symbolic setting into the main story. The contrast with an earlier political report is limited but clear: both stories show how a public confrontation can begin with a rival's presence in a highly visible setting. Here, the reported facts go no further than the dispute in the box and Pérez's decision to stay.
There was no reported institutional decision, formal sanction or change at Real Madrid or Atlético. The known sequence is narrower. Pérez learned about Riquelme's invitation during the pre-match directors' meeting, became furious, threatened to leave if they met, was calmed down and stayed for a derby Atlético won 2-1. The episode is therefore a piece of football politics, not a change in either club's operation.
The simplest conclusion is also the strongest. According to the COPE reports, the presence of a former presidential rival was enough to trigger a serious confrontation in Florentino Pérez's box. It was not enough to make him leave the stadium. The story shows how sensitive that space can be, without proving anything beyond the reported reaction.
