What Are The Requirements For Owning And Running A Professional Football Club In Italy?
I was asked to discuss the financial and governing requirements to own a club and participate in the Italian football landscape, right at a time when two of the most historic clubs have changed ownership: namely Chelsea on 30 May 2022 and AC Milan on 1 June 2022.
The past months have registered an unprecedented number of Italian professional clubs' ownership passing into the hands of foreign investors, particularly from the US.
This article explores the possible reasons behind these recent deals and then proceeds to delve into the main considerations and requirements that potential investors need to take care of when looking to invest in and run a football club in Italy.
It discusses:
- Current landscape in the face of recent acquisitions
- Are all these (almost) concurrent deals a coincidence?
- What are the regulatory constraints potential investors should be mindful of?
- What does this mean in practice?
- A practical example for the 2022/2023 sporting season
- Looking ahead - Conclusive remarks
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- Tags: Acquisition | Broadcasting | Commercial Law | Corporate Law | Football | Italy | Regulation & Governance | Serie A | Sports | UEFA | United Kingdom (UK) | United States of America (USA)
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Written by
Stella Riberti
Stella is a senior associate in the sports & entertainment team of Withers. Her practice focuses on both international commercial contracts and a wide range of sports law matters - in respect of which she specialises in advising athletes, agents, coaches, clubs, leagues and agencies on contractual and regulatory issues as well as representing in international sports arbitration proceedings. She is a member of the Italian Ice Sports Association’s Judicial Panel and sits on the Sports Law Commission of the Milan Bar and on the Lombardia Commission of the Italian Sports Lawyers Association.