Enrique Riquelme, who is challenging Florentino Pérez for the Real Madrid presidency, has promised to sign Manchester City striker Erling Haaland if he wins the election.

A similar story unfolded at the turn of the century. Ahead of the 2000/01 season, Pérez campaigned on a promise to build a “Galácticos” squad and sign one of Barcelona’s key figures, Luís Figo, from Real Madrid’s eternal rivals. The veteran executive ultimately delivered on that promise.

Today, however, Riquelme’s use of Haaland’s name in his campaign has sparked outrage from both the player’s representatives and Manchester City. The club is reportedly considering legal action against the businessman for using the Norwegian star’s image and name without authorization.

So why was Florentino Pérez not sued by either Barcelona or Figo when he used the Portuguese star’s name during his own presidential campaign?

The answer is simple: Pérez knew exactly what he was doing. According to reports, he had already reached a secret agreement with Figo during the season, meaning there was virtually no chance of the player backing out of a move to Madrid. It was even claimed that Figo agreed to let Pérez use his name because he did not believe the businessman would actually win the election. In the end, the Portuguese icon joined Real Madrid for a then world-record fee of €62 million.

The situation today is very different. Haaland himself is not particularly keen on a move to Real Madrid. In both cases, the presidential candidates have attempted to use major transfer promises to attract voters. The difference is that Pérez had already convinced Figo, whereas Haaland appears far less likely to be persuaded.

There is another important distinction. At the time, Barcelona needed the €62 million transfer fee, while Manchester City currently faces no financial pressure whatsoever.

Interestingly, Pérez won his first presidential election after promising supporters that he would sign Figo. Now, a quarter of a century later, the 79-year-old executive nicknamed “The Shark” may find himself on the receiving end of a similar story after another presidential hopeful publicly pledged to sign a superstar worth around €150 million.