Who knew that Edinson Cavani’s €64 million transfer in 2013 would stir so many passions.
When I first heard Aurelio De Laurentiis’ words that summer, my first reaction was ‘what an absolute tosser’. Whilst it does paint the picture of the arrogant protagonist in this story, the underlying questions are also about the contextual reality the man is operating in.
In this day and age of quick judgments and summary social executions, perhaps we should slow down and ask the following questions first: What do fans really want from team ownership? What does owning (arguably) the 5th largest Italian football club mean? and How does ADL fill the bill?
Let’s start with a disclaimer about biases. If you are reading this, you (most likely), like I, are thinking in English, and are interested in Neapolitan things. We are however not stuck in an Italian logic prism. By that I mean, we are already thinking out of the ‘provincial’ box. This divide is where opinion starts to differ on ADL.
If we are to generalize, ADL devotion in the fanbase outside of Naples is proportionally much greater than in Naples itself. This is where we begin to pull at the thread that will take us on our journey to know who is ADL, how does he operate, and why?
Most of us know that ADL is a film producer who seized the opportunity to pick up one of Italy’s largest fan bases (client base) at less than 10 cents on the dollar. As a seller of entertainment, the parallels were direct and the business opportunity too great for a businessman such as he to pass over.
His approach to the Napoli purchase has always been to create his longest feature – more than a film, he has created his longest running TV series. We are, after all, in season 18 – and we are all still watching!
ADL has always known what the box office potential could be. Consequently, he structured this Napoli feature as any competent film producer would: keeping his fixed costs low, spending the bare necessary on the film crew, always hiring capable casting directors, and focusing his efforts on grabbing the right director and cast to ensure the evolution of the series.
Practically speaking, this means no permanent infrastructure. No company headquarters, no company-owned stadium, no company-owned training facilities, nothing! The business model is so extreme that it has sacrificed the youth system, and fan services (ticket sales are nightmarish) while, in general, communications strategies are an apparent afterthought.
Business is business, and to keep the boat afloat you have to sell more than you spend. In Italy, that means a top 4 finish and endless political skirmishes to haggle about what share of the mismanaged TV rights you get – the appropriate mental image is a group of old men arguing over who gets the biggest cigar whilst they are on the bridge of the titanic.
To boot, anyone that has lived in the south of Italy knows how difficult it is to run a business, so much so that there is a modern tragedy written by Antonio Menna called Se Steve jobs fosse nato a Napoli, which describes all of the misery and might required to succeed.
Nevertheless, ADL has been demonstrating that the football business in Italy is viable, trying to change the system by arguing Napoli’s case and trying to make the collective Serie A cake bigger.
You could say, Napoli is the Ryanair of football – despite the service, you continue to consume the product, baring the stench, because it is so effective. Oh, and by the way, did we mention the business model kicks some serious butt!?!
In the Italian football system, ADL’s methods are revolutionary and highly disturbing to the palazzo, but there is not much that they can do. They can put up with the Pozzo’s and the Percassi’s as passing fancies for the lucrative Champions League places. Those clubs can be remediated by pillaging their best players for a few million, relegating them back to their provincial places.
Napoli is different. Always in Europe. Always in the black. Napoli can’t be dismissed.
Which brings us back to the initial question: What does a fan want?
The fan wants to dream, she wants emotions, he wants to win something, they want to be entertained!
Despite all the overt protagonism, ADL is our Shakspeare. He provides us with all of the protagonists, he creates our villains, he gives us our love stories and then breaks our hearts – Cirooooo, I am still bleeding!
Winning is not just titles. How you win is more important, as it differentiates us from those that would cheat and steal anything to sew 36 scudetti on their lurid jerseys.
ADL has given us Mazzari’s marauders, with fairy tales like Grava (dalla C alla Champions). Then a gentleman like Benitez and Sarri, where for at least three years we reduced la vecchia signora to tears, so much so she was caught in a corner whining “Winning is more important than playing well”.
It got so bad for them that they spent a monstrous €90 million to steal Gonzalo from us. So we invented Ciro to be his replacement, and he played even better. He Allowed us to scream “THE CHAMPIONS!” together, whilst we went around Europe teaching Sarriball.
This year, we cried our tears for Lorenzo, we had our hearts torn out with Ciro, and had our souls crushed by that mountain of a human being K2 leaving.
What a season finale! What the hell was going to come next?
Many shouted “3 packs of cigarettes and an unknown Georgian goat herder!”
“Stay tuned” he said. “What for?” we asked.
Well, for a gegenpressed Klopp, a total-footballed Ajax and the biggest servings of humble pie distributed around Italy in the first 10 days of Serie A (as well as on the A16).
Spalletti has gone on to amalgamate a team that is like the Bumble-Bee that only flies because, whilst physics says her flying is impossible, she does so anyway because she knows nothing of physics.
I am writing this on the eve of Napoli vs Rangers, and I can state with my hand on heart that, having lived through Ferlaino, Gallo, Corbelli, and Naldi.
In ADL we have a winner. We have a well-oiled entertainment machine. It is strong, it is healthy, and while we may have to pay the ‘pappone’, so be it. Last I checked, you don’t get nothin’ for nothin’ in this life.
You can ask Joe about Napoli’s amazing numbers, you can ask Michele for tickets when you are in Naples. What I will ask ADL is for continued entertainment.
And when I meet him in person, I will shake his hand and say “ Grazie Presidente for the most amazing ride, I am loving it.” I will then check for all my fingers, and ask where the hell he has hidden the scugnizzeria!
Great article Kimon! As someone who has been critical of ADL, I can admit he has always done it his way, and from the start kept Napoli competitive without bouncing too many checks. Still much room for improvement to take his club to a world class level. That could become much easier with a Scudetto this year, along with making it to semifinals in UCL!