Wang Qinbo: Samp s tragedy, a microcosm of the glory of Italian football

Sports Weekly All-Media Reporter Wang Qinbo

On May 16, two things that may touch the emotions of old Serie A fans.

One thing is that more than 100 former Inter Milan stars gathered in Morati's private mansion to celebrate their 80th birthday for "Dad". Morati's children originally told him that the birthday party would be held in a small form, but they did not expect that Ronaldo, Vieri, Recoba, Matrazi, Zanetti, Pirlo and others would appear on time, and more than 300 guests gathered together.

Another thing is that three days after Sampdoria confirmed her relegation to Serie C, more than 100 angry Sampdor fans gathered outside the club's training center to collectively insult the team and management, and threatened, "We want to make you shit!" The final compromise was that the players were forced to take off their jerseys on the spot because they "don't deserve to wear it", and the jerseys were then handed over to a small group of extreme fans. This scene is similar to a similar incident that occurred during Genoa's match against Siena in April 2012: Genoa was also in danger of relegation at that time, the players were forced to take off their jerseys, and Genoa captain Marco Rossi handed the jerseys to extreme fans on behalf of the entire team.

In fact, Morati and Sampdoria, two names that trigger nostalgia, are both microcosm of the glory of Italian football.

Small cities are difficult to raise teams

Morati represents a romantic rich man who "spends money to play football". In order to get Inter Milan back to its peak, he paid for his own pocket every year to fill a deficit hole of 60 million to 70 million euros for the club every year. When the family business has difficulties in operating, Morati cannot maintain such expenditures and can only choose to sell the club.

Berlusconi's situation is also similar to that of Morati, except that in the early 21st century, Berlusconi kept the investment in football in the range of 25 million to 30 million euros. By the 1910s, it was no longer possible to maintain a Serie A giant team with such a deficit. Even if Galliani pieced together and "zero dollar purchases" everywhere, it would be useless, and AC Milan was also forced to choose to sell.

Sampdoria's situation is not just that "burning money cannot be maintained", but that teams of this size will find it difficult to survive in Serie A in the future, and it is not easy to say even Serie B. Sampdoria's final outcome was actually destined when Ferrero became the club's chairman in 2014, and what happened is just an unfinished ending.

Genoa has a population of 560,000, and Sampdoria was first formed by the merger of two block teams. The fairy tale of Sampdoria is related to the oil business in this port city. It turned out that Paul Mantovani, who was a press officer at the club, made a fortune in the oil business, so he acquired the team and introduced stars. The combination of Viali and Mancini was born. Sampdoria won three Italian Cups and one European Cup of Winners in the 1980s, won the Serie A championship in the 1990-91 season, and lost to Cruyff's Barcelona in the Champions League final the following year.

Paul Mantovani died of lung cancer in 1993, and Sampdoria's glory came to an end. Although he won the Italian Cup again in the 1993-94 season, he was relegated in the late 1990s because of his poor strength.

When Sampdoria was in Serie B, another Sampdor fan proposed a revitalization plan, which was Ricardo Garone. The entrepreneur's family oil company, ERG, has served as a Samps sponsor for many years.

Ricardo Garone believes that Genoa's city size is actually not enough to support two professional teams, especially those who cannot support two professional teams in top leagues like Serie A. At that time, Genoa was also in Serie B. Ricardo Garone suggested that the merger of the two clubs could form a larger team with city support. It is expected that in the future, it will be easier to operate and make breakthroughs in competitive performance.

That era was still the prosperous period of Serie A, and many bosses were burning money for football. Genoa was the oldest existing football club in Italy. Sampdoria had glory from the 1980s to the early 1990s, and the merger was like a humiliation to both sides. Ricardo Garone's proposal was opposed by many parties, and the two clubs were not interested in discussing the matter at all.

In fact, Ricardo Garone calculated the football account correctly: the operation and income prospects of a club are directly related to the population size and number of fans in the city where it is located. It is not a first-tier Italian city, and it is also divided into two teams. Although the atmosphere of the "Lighthouse Derby" is very popular, strictly speaking, that kind of popularity belongs to only a small number of loyalists. Ricardo Garone's idea was later confirmed elsewhere. In Italian medium-sized cities like Florence and Bologna, there were no two teams diversions, so it was much less difficult to maintain the club's operation.

Finally, out of love for Sampdoria, Ricardo Garone acquired Sampdoria, who was deteriorating in Serie B and could fall into Serie C. With his investment, Sampdoria returned to Serie A, with the most brilliant one being to reach the Italian Cup final and won the fourth league and qualifying tickets in the 2009-10 season.

Sampdoria was relegated in the season after finishing fourth in the league. In addition to the departure of manager Marota, another very direct reason is that after the team's performance was improved, the Garone family could not continue to provide corresponding investment, and the lineup could not withstand the test of two-line battles between the league and the UEFA Cup. Although Sampdoria returned to Serie A in Serie B this time, the Garone family has lost interest and confidence in investing in football.

The "Black Fairy Tale" in Italy

In 2013, Ricardo Garone died of illness, and his son Eduardo Garone took over the club. Eduardo Garone faces an indescribable account: Even though Sampdoria is not a giant team participating in the Champions League, the returns from television broadcast sharing, sponsors, commercial development, etc. are quite limited. The team basically relies on the boss to pay for money, and often reaches the deficit hole of tens of millions of yuan.

is impossible to sell a club like this. The most convenient way is to let go and let it down and go bankrupt. But out of love for the club, Eduardo Garone came up with a solution, he was willing to sell the club at a symbolic price, while maintaining subsidies to the club during the transition period to ensure financial balance, and then withdraw completely.

comedian Ferrero became Sampdoria's boss in 2014. Although the exact figures were not disclosed, Italian media generally reported that Ferrero always came to the Garone family to ask for money in the first two or three summers, and the amount of each deficit may be as high as more than 20 million. After the righteousness of the people, the Garone family completely withdrew, Ferrero's business plan did not achieve anything, and Sampdoria was repeatedly in a serious financial crisis and was on the verge of bankruptcy. In 2021, Ferrero was arrested for suspected fraud, and the club was once entrusted.

Ricardo Garone's prophecy came true. No one can afford this team, this city cannot afford it, and there is no way that any kind of business plan can afford it.

In this case, Sampdoria's natural ending was bankruptcy and downgrade, especially at that time the club had 150 million euros on its books, of which 49 million euros were owed taxes. What profit level does a club need to achieve to repay such debts?

However, a "Italian fairy tale" appears again, but it is a black fairy tale.

Former Leeds United boss Radrizani appeared together with Gestio Capital founder Manfreddy, taking over the club and submitting a business plan to return to Serie A and revitalize the club. Then, the Italian Football Association magically agreed to Samp's registration qualification, and the Italian tax department even approved the exemption of 65% of the club's tax debt, requiring only 17.7 million euros to be recovered and paid off in installments by 2043.

Italian journalist Paul Chiliani publicly questioned the Italian Football Association in the fall of 2023. He believes that "the Italian Football Association approved the club's participation in the premise of knowing that the financial structure of the club is unhealthy and relied on miraculous reconstruction, which is a 'moral shame'." He believes that the Italian Football Association's protection of Sampdoria is only because Samp was once the "big team" in Serie A history, while the small teams Chivo and Regina were severely punished for being relegated to the low-level league due to lighter issues, but Samp enjoys special treatment.

Worse, in the event that the mirage-like business plan could not be achieved, the two investors exposed their true goal through equity changes: Radrizani disappeared quickly after the acquisition was completed, and Manfreddy took control of the club. In November 2024, Gestio Capital Structuring & Investment Solution SA, a company owned by Manfreddy, transferred 58% of its shares to Kickoff VenturesSA.

Kickoff VenturesSA is a Luxembourg-registered company, behind which are three Singapore investors invested through Singapore’s family office OctavaPte Ltd. Their names have appeared in the "Panama Document" and are associated with the Isle of Man-based bookmaker Fun88. Fun88 is active in the Asian market and its main business involves online gambling.

So, the one who finally bought Samp, appointed and fired multiple former star coaches in one season was actually the most likely type of person to kill football, and the Italian Football Association was absent from the whole process. Paul Chiliani believes that after Samp down to Serie C, Italian Football Association Chairman Gravina played the emotional card and expressed sadness, which was really hypocritical.

Sampdoria fans expressed their support for the team with a sea of ​​flags in the arc stands, even if they were relegated, they would not change. On the other hand, after Sampdoria was relegated, Genoa fans held a humiliating "funeral" for their mortal enemies in the city.

It is worth mentioning that Genoa almost has the same fate as Samp this season. Their original investor, 777 fund, went bankrupt last fall, and Genoa, whose lineup was weakened this season and suffered injuries, had a difficult start. Fortunately, the club's change of coach Vieira achieved immediate results. At the same time, Romanian furniture businessman and Bucharest quick boss Shuku took over the team, bringing more than 40 million euros in cash, and the club's financial situation improved.

But whether Shuku can maintain investment in the future is also a question. In fact, in the 18 years since the Italian toy tycoon Preziosi invested in Genoa, Genoa has become a strange thing for Serie A clubs in the last few years: if the salary of other clubs accounts for more than 80% of their income is already a serious red line, Genoa accounts for more than 100% of their income, which means that the boss must pay for subsidies for basic operations. This also shows the club's dismal income.

Today, Ricardo Garone's idea was still correct, but it may be difficult to become a reality.