Florentino Perez launched a furious attack on sections of the Spanish media during an explosive emergency press conference on Tuesday, with one journalist quickly responding after being singled out by the Real Madrid president.
Perez called the briefing to confirm that fresh presidential elections will be held at the club while also announcing his intention to run once again.
The 79-year-old wasted little time addressing speculation surrounding his future at the Santiago Bernabeu.
“I’m sorry to tell you that I’m not going to resign,” said the President.
Perez, who has previously gone unopposed in several elections, also shut down rumours surrounding his health and insisted he remains fully capable of continuing in his role.
“Some people have said I have terminal cancer. I’m still the president of Real Madrid and my company.
“I’m the president of a company which is a world leader in infrastructure, which has 170,000 employees, makes 5 billion per year, and my health is perfect.”
As the press conference gathered momentum, Perez turned his attention toward what he described as unfair treatment from the Spanish press.
The veteran football executive criticised repeated reports suggesting he could soon leave office and challenged anyone interested in replacing him to formally contest the elections.
“I don’t understand the Spanish press,” he said. “They’ve overused the ‘let’s see if I leave’ mentality. I’m not going to leave.
“I’ll be the last member to leave. The members are the owners of Real Madrid.
“If someone wants to run for president, they shouldn’t just threaten; they should actually run and explain how they’ll finance it.
“They shouldn’t be asking the banks if the president of an electricity company can guarantee a candidacy…”
Perez then directly targeted Spanish outlet ABC after reports claimed he had become exhausted due to the demands of running the club.
“Nobody should expect me to sit idly by, that I’m tired, according to ABC. ABC is a Madrid newspaper, and Real Madrid is the club of the world. I mention ABC because I’m angry about this, but I could say the same about others.
“I preside over a very important company worldwide, with a turnover of 50 billion and 170,000 employees. Why is ABC doing this? Did they see me looking tired here? Starting tomorrow, I’m going to fight with all the shareholders to prevent them from taking ownership.
“Where did it come from that I have cancer? And I didn’t even know… If they want me to leave, I’ll leave when someone comes along and beats me in the elections. If they win the elections, thank God.
“The company belongs to the shareholders, not to a few journalists who I suppose are Atletico Madrid fans.”
Shortly after the fiery press conference, ABC journalist Ruben Canizares responded publicly on social media.
“Florentino Perez has called a press conference to try to humiliate ABC, the Vocento group, and me.
“And I wasn’t going to allow it. There are limits that cannot be crossed. Very proud of my work and my newspaper. That is clear.”
Meanwhile, Real Madrid will now switch focus back to the pitch as they prepare for their next La Liga fixture against Real Oviedo after rivals Barcelona sealed the league title with games to spare.
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