Riquelme, in his Real Madrid campaign, announced a new 15,000-seat arena and a larger Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium
Enrique Riquelme, a candidate for the presidency of Real Madrid, entered the final stage of the campaign with an infrastructure proposal that, if implemented, would significantly change the appearance of the club complex in Valdebebas. According to his presentation of the project, the central part of the plan is the construction of a new basketball arena with a capacity of 15,000 spectators, alongside a broader redevelopment of the area intended for club members. The same package also announced a major reconstruction of the Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium, whose capacity would be increased to approximately 20,000 seats. This would make the stadium, which Real Madrid officially describes as a venue with a current capacity of 6,000 seats and the possibility of further growth, a much larger stage for club matches outside the Santiago Bernabéu.
Riquelme presented the project in the context of Real Madrid's presidential elections, in which he is facing long-time president Florentino Pérez. According to the club's official announcements, the electoral process opened in May 2026, and candidacies could be submitted from 14 to 23 May. Real Madrid's electoral board announced that Riquelme, club member number 41,736, submitted the documentation for his candidacy on 23 May, while Florentino Pérez's candidacy had previously been submitted by his representative Eduardo Fernández de Blas. Spanish media, referring to the electoral calendar, reported that the vote was scheduled for 7 June 2026, bringing the club into a rare electoral race with more than one candidate.
Valdebebas as the centre of the election programme
Riquelme's proposal, according to the report by El País from the presentation of his programme, is called "Ciudad del Socio", or city for the members. The idea is for the existing club space in Valdebebas, known as Real Madrid City, to be expanded with facilities that would serve not only the professional teams and the youth academy, but also the club's members. The announced plan mentions a new basketball arena, a hotel, a wellness centre, restaurants, swimming pools and additional sports facilities. Riquelme is trying to position such a concept as an alternative to the current management model, arguing that the club should turn more strongly towards its socios, the members who formally constitute the ownership base of Real Madrid.
The new 15,000-seat basketball arena would be the most visible sporting part of that project. Real Madrid's basketball team currently plays in the large Madrid arena that since 2025 has been called Movistar Arena, previously known as WiZink Center. According to data from the City of Madrid's tourist service, it is a multifunctional arena with a maximum capacity of up to 17,000 spectators, hosting concerts and other major events alongside basketball. Riquelme's proposal therefore does not mean only the construction of an additional venue, but a possible change in the relationship of the basketball section towards its own infrastructure, because the club would gain an arena within its own complex.
In electoral terms, such a message has a dual function. On the one hand, Riquelme wants to emphasise that Real Madrid should not depend only on the commercial strength of the renovated Santiago Bernabéu, but should also develop facilities for other sections. On the other hand, the new arena fits into the wider debate on how directly club members use and feel the infrastructure in which investment is made. According to reports in the Spanish media, during the campaign Riquelme criticised the availability of tickets and season tickets, announced greater transparency in their distribution and proposed additional measures that would, according to his claim, restore a greater role to members in the everyday life of the club.
What the expansion of the Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium would mean
The second important part of the announcement concerns the Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium, located in Real Madrid City. According to Real Madrid's official description, the stadium currently has 6,000 seats, of which 4,000 are on the western side and 2,000 on the eastern side, and it was designed so that it can grow in line with the club's needs. The club also states that the capacity in the final stage of development could reach 25,000 spectators. Riquelme's campaign, according to the El País report, speaks of an increase to around 20,000 seats, which would in practice more than triple the current capacity and bring the stadium closer to the role of a more serious competitive venue.
The Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium has a special role in the club's infrastructure. Real Madrid Castilla play their home matches there, and the stadium is also used for women's football and training sessions. During the pandemic period and the renovation of the Santiago Bernabéu, Real Madrid's first team temporarily played some matches at that very stadium, which increased its visibility beyond the framework of youth and reserve football. A larger capacity could open space for more frequent matches of the women's team in front of a larger number of spectators, for more important Castilla matches or for other club events that do not require the use of the Bernabéu.
Such an expansion, however, would not only be a matter of stands. A 20,000-seat stadium would require a different transport, security, media and commercial organisation, especially if it were used for high-interest matches. Valdebebas is already the club's key sporting centre, but a larger number of spectators would mean additional demands on access to the complex, parking, public transport and operational zones for fans, teams, television crews and security services. Therefore, the realisation of such an announcement would depend not only on an electoral victory, but also on design, permits, financing and alignment with urban planning conditions in Madrid.
The basketball section as part of the fight for the club's identity
Riquelme's announcement of a new arena is also important because of the status of Real Madrid's basketball section. Real Madrid Baloncesto is one of the most decorated European basketball clubs, and EuroLeague describes it in its official materials as the most successful club in the history of the competition. In such a context, the question of its own arena carries symbolic weight. A club that in football has the modernised Santiago Bernabéu, one of the most recognisable stadiums in the world, currently uses a city multifunctional arena in basketball, and not a venue that is fully part of the club complex.
An arena with a capacity of 15,000 spectators would be sized for the biggest matches of the domestic league and the EuroLeague, but also for events outside basketball. If the project were designed as a multipurpose arena, it could fit into the club's broader economic strategy, with revenue from space rental, hospitality, corporate boxes and accompanying events. Such a model is not new in European sport, but it is particularly sensitive at Real Madrid because of the constant debate about where the club's sporting identity ends and where the commercial logic of a major global brand begins. It is precisely on that boundary that Riquelme is trying to build a difference from Pérez in the campaign.
According to available reports, Riquelme is trying to connect the basketball arena with the message of a club that, as he claims, should remain entirely in the hands of its members. In the campaign, he criticised the possibility of an outside investor entering a new business structure of the club, while Pérez claims that any potential minority capital entry would serve to protect and strengthen Real Madrid without the members losing control. For that reason, the announcement of the arena is not an isolated construction proposal. It is part of a wider clash between two visions: one that emphasises institutional continuity, financial strength and global commercialisation, and another that puts members, accessibility and a different distribution of club priorities in the foreground.
Elections with greater significance than a single infrastructure project
Real Madrid's 2026 presidential elections have attracted great attention because they are taking place after a long period in which Florentino Pérez did not have a serious electoral challenger. Pérez led the club from 2000 to 2006 and again from 2009, and during his term Real Madrid became one of the financially strongest sporting organisations in the world. According to the club's financial documents for the 2024/2025 season, Real Madrid reported revenue of more than one billion euros, excluding player transfers, while continuing strong commercial development after the renovation of the Santiago Bernabéu. It is precisely this financial position that is one of the main arguments of Pérez's side in the campaign.
Riquelme, on the other hand, is trying to open up the question of governance, transparency and the relationship with members. According to the official minutes of the electoral board, his candidacy was submitted within the prescribed deadline, with the documentation required by the club's rules. Spanish public broadcaster RTVE reported that the electoral board confirmed that Riquelme's documentation met the requirements for candidacy, ensuring that the elections would not be merely a formality. This turns infrastructure announcements, including the arena and the expansion of the Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium, into concrete points by which members can compare programmes.
The role of members is especially important because Real Madrid is not a classic joint-stock company in the hands of a single owner. The club traditionally presents itself as an organisation that belongs to the socios, and Pérez has emphasised in official appearances that he wants to protect that model and prevent Real Madrid from losing its special ownership structure. Riquelme, however, claims that the existing way of management is precisely what distances members from real decision-making. In that debate, infrastructure projects are not only a question of concrete, steel and capacity, but also a question of whom they are intended for and who will have the right to use them under the best conditions.
Questions of financing and implementation remain open
Although the announcement of the new arena and the expansion of the stadium is politically strong, not all key technical and financial details are currently known. According to available information from the Spanish media, Riquelme presented the project as part of a broader plan for Valdebebas, but final cost estimates, construction timelines, the financing model and detailed project documentation have not been published. In interventions of this kind, the difference between an election promise and a feasible project can be large, especially at a club that already has complex obligations connected with the renovation and commercial use of the Santiago Bernabéu.
Another important question is the relationship of the new arena to the existing Movistar Arena. The current arena in the centre of Madrid has developed infrastructure, experience in organising major events and a strong commercial calendar. A new club arena in Valdebebas could give Real Madrid greater control over schedules, revenues and the identity of the basketball section, but at the same time it would have to justify investment in an environment in which Madrid already has a large multifunctional arena. Therefore, the future debate would probably revolve around whether Real Madrid can fill and monetise the new venue often enough and how it would fit into the existing sporting and concert offer of the city.
The same applies to the Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium. Expansion to 20,000 seats could increase the importance of women's football, Castilla and other club activities, but it would have to be aligned with real demand. If the stadium were used only occasionally for matches of great interest, the question of cost-effectiveness would be different than if it became a regularly filled centre of several club projects. According to Real Madrid's official information, the stadium was conceived from the beginning as a venue that can grow, but each new stage of development would require a clear assessment of benefits, costs and long-term maintenance.
The campaign intensifies ahead of the vote
The electoral race at Real Madrid has become sharper in recent days. El País reported that Florentino Pérez, at the presentation of his candidacy, criticised Riquelme's team and linked it to an earlier period of club management under Ramón Calderón, while Riquelme then requested a televised debate and rejected part of the accusations. Such a tone shows that the campaign is not being conducted only around individual projects, but also around trust, financial credibility and the interpretation of the last twenty or so years of the club's history. In such an atmosphere, every major promise, including the new arena and the stadium expansion, also becomes a test of political persuasiveness.
For Real Madrid members, the choice will therefore come down to more than the question of whether they want a new arena or a larger stadium in Valdebebas. Pérez offers continuity of management based on sporting trophies, a strong brand, record revenues and the renovated Bernabéu. Riquelme is trying to offer a different emphasis, with projects that should strengthen the role of members, open new spaces for basketball and football sections outside the first team and change the way the club communicates with its own base. The outcome of the election on 7 June will show whether members have more confidence in the continuation of the current model or in a programme that promises a new phase in the development of Valdebebas.
Sources:
- Real Madrid CF – official announcement on the calling of elections for president and board of directors and the electoral calendar (link)
- Real Madrid CF – minutes of the electoral board on the submission of Enrique José Riquelme Vives's candidacy (link)
- Real Madrid CF – official information about the Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium, current capacity and possibility of expansion (link)
- El País – report from the presentation of Riquelme's project for Valdebebas, the new arena and the expansion of the Alfredo Di Stéfano Stadium (link)
- RTVE / Agencies – report on the confirmation of Riquelme's candidacy and the electoral race against Florentino Pérez (link)
- Madrid Destino / esmadrid.com – data on Movistar Arena in Madrid, capacity and sporting use of the arena (link)
- Real Madrid CF – official section with the club's financial reports and annual accounts (link)