Overview
- The campaign escalated on Wednesday when Florentino Pérez posted a video showing José Mourinho saying 'yes' to a return and Enrique Riquelme presented a notarised pledge to sign Erling Haaland.
- Mourinho’s clip is under dispute with reports that he told Benfica the footage used AI, and Haaland’s father and agent immediately denied any agreement with Riquelme.
- Pérez announced he will make a €150 million offer for an unnamed 'galáctico' and narrowed some exclusions, which prompted media speculation about targets and prompt denials from PSG and Bayern that their young stars are for sale.
- Riquelme has coupled big transfer promises with institutional plans including naming Raúl as sporting director and Fernando Hierro to run the academy while offering financial guarantees to socios if pledges fail.
- With the June 7 vote days away most marquee promises remain unverified and the contest has highlighted practical transfer limits such as long player contracts, clubs publicly refusing to sell, and fresh questions about campaign tactics and AI use.