Written by Umberto Pelà (19.07.2024)
What does a British billionaire businessman see in an Italian Serie B club?
Today, a question like that may sound relatively common. With financial institutions increasing their interest and stakes within the world of sports, such acquisitions may go unnoticed. Further, as multi-club ownership (MCO) becomes a more frequent model within the world of soccer, investments in minority (or majority) stakes of clubs have been accepted as first steps in detailed master plans.
Yet if we take a step back to January of 2021 and raise the same question, our answer may not be as clear as it is today.
When Alex Knaster, British billionaire and owner of Pamplona Capital Management, acquired 75% of Pisa’s soccer team (Pisa Sporting Club) for €12M, many eyebrows were raised. Like other acquisitions in Italy at the time (see Suning acquiring Inter Milan from former owner Erick Thohir), Italian fans must have questioned what Knaster saw in sports investments.
To unpack this question, we must look at things from a couple of different perspectives.
First, from a financial perspective. Money runs the world, after all.
An individual like Knaster, a billionaire, needs no encouragement to find opportunities that will generate capital gains in the long run. With Pisa Sporting Club’s acquisition, Knaster saw an opportunity to capitalize on a dilapidated stadium and training facility. His plan likely had three parts — with the ultimate objective of getting promoted to Serie A.
Part one: After acquiring the club, Knaster and his board of directors immediately set their eyes on rebuilding the team’s facilities and stadium. While requiring significant capital injections, this move increases the value of assets and the prestige of the club. Besides the tangible benefits shown on an income statement, this creates excitement in the town, translating into greater fan engagement, more revenue from matchday experiences, and jersey sales. Moreover, having an ambitious plan for rebuilding stadiums and facilities is key to attracting top talent: part two of the master plan.
Part two: With a solid foundation and trustworthy fundamentals, Pisa quickly became a place where players wanted to be, not just a stepping stone for exposure. Funding transfers require substantial capital, but an attractive project often makes the difference in recruiting talent that makes teams highly competitive. Higher-level benefits include attracting interest from sponsors, meaning increased revenue.
Part three: As the club gets a full makeover, they can start looking towards promotion, a concept absent from American sports models. By this stage, Pisa should be a place where top talent wants to be, often translating into sporting success and promotions. Securing a spot in Serie A would mean partial success for Knaster, bringing in increased revenues from major broadcasting deals and the opportunity to start thinking big.
This is how the plan was probably set up. But in reality, soccer, especially in Italy, poses many threats to investors’ grand plans, particularly for those unfamiliar with the Italian sporting environment.
Specifically, Knaster and his team might have underestimated the challenges of Italian bureaucracy and how it might threaten his investment.
To this day, July 19th, 2024, Pisa SC has yet to build new facilities or initiate conversations for a new stadium. While renders and projects have been proposed, Italian bureaucracy, for the umpteenth time, poses a threat to what seems like an ambitious, exciting project. Pisa’s mayor speaks about how both parties are taking “steps forward” for developing training facilities, yet no real talk has been held regarding the stadium.
Keep in mind, it has been more than three years since Knaster purchased 75% of the club in 2021.
This is precisely what holds back — and will continue to hold back — Italy from becoming a titan in terms of sports business. Italian fans will never get the state-of-the-art facilities they deserve. Instead, because of Italy’s outdated mentality preventing even the demolition of old, decaying stadiums, they are stuck with facilities that are borderline dangerous.
As Inter’s now-president Giuseppe Marotta put it last Thursday, there’s simply “too much bureaucracy” in Italy regarding stadiums. With stadiums owned by cities, not clubs, clubs must navigate a myriad of councils before reaching a final decision. This exponentially slows down projects and discourages investors. Additionally, with many stadiums being remarkably old, they are considered cultural goods, complicating demolition.
So, is Knaster’s investment a flop?
Who knows? That’s the honest answer.
If the question is strictly financially oriented, one would have to look at Pisa’s income statement, figure out how much cash was injected, and if the club is operating at a loss — likely, given how other clubs in Italy’s lower divisions operate. Even then, it would be harsh to consider a couple of years running at a loss as a flop. A sprint on the new facilities and stadium could come any year, ironically, not a joke, producing long-term tangible and intangible benefits.
On the other hand, from a human perspective, I wouldn’t consider this a flop at all. Knaster and his team brought excitement to a city and fueled Pisa’s fans with hope.
In sports, that’s all a fan can ask for: a glimmer of hope, believing things will change for the better as they continue to support their team unconditionally. While we don’t know Knaster’s motivations, it’s reasonable to assume this might have been a personal venture to diversify his investments and enjoy the adrenaline of running a soccer club. With money unquestionably running the world, this view brings a surprisingly refreshing and wholesome breeze to my mind.
Works Cited:
1. [Alexander Knaster – Wikipedia](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Alexander_Knaster)
2. [Alex Knaster acquires Pisa Calcio – beBeez](https://bebeez.it/private-equity/e-ufficiale-alex-knaster-fondatore-di-pamplona-capital-si-compra-il-75-del-pisa-calcio/)
3. [Pisa Sporting Club’s Expansion – Pisa Today](https://www.pisatoday.it/sport/calcio/replica-pisa-sporting-club-ampliamento-curva-nord-arena-garibaldi.html)
4. [Increasing Stadium Capacity – Pisa Today](https://www.pisatoday.it/cronaca/aumento-capienza-curvino-stadio-pisa-tempi-costi.html)
5. [Giuseppe Marotta on Bureaucracy – Il Nerazzurro](https://www.ilnerazzurro.it/news/26845023750/marotta-in-italia-troppa-burocrazia-sugli-stadi-serve-cambio-di-passo)
6. [Knaster’s €12 Million Acquisition – Global Legal Chronicle](https://globallegalchronicle.com/alexander-knasters-e12-million-acquisition-of-75-interest-in-pisa-sporting-club/)
7. [History of Pisa Sporting Club – Wikipedia](https://it.wikipedia.org/wiki/Storia_del_Pisa_Sporting_Club)
8. [Pisa Sports Center Plan – Pisa Today](https://www.pisatoday.it/cronaca/centro-sportivo-pisa-piano-attuativo-iter.html)