In the same time, Como and its owners take a long-term approach; they do not act like traditional investors, whose primary goal is to maximize profit from their investment in a club. Their aim is rather to advance the club, the city, its inhabitants, and the region as a whole. While other clubs owned by traditional investors, like RB Leipzig in Germany, “exploit” football as a simple means to market their own products, Como adopts a more sustainable marketing strategy.
This extends to offering, for example, a onesie to newborns in the municipal hospitals of Como. Moreover, the club collaborates with 14 local bars. If the club wins one of its official matches, a round of drinks is offered to the present customers. The goal is clear: to unite the local population to its cause and ensure that the Como project is perceived as an asset for the region rather than a disruptive factor.
This also involves the expansion of the magnificent stadium. Built in 1927, the Stadio Giuseppe Sinigaglia, beautifully located on the edge of Lake Como and offering a phenomenal view of the lake in addition to the action on the field, currently still belongs to the city of Como, but should eventually be bought and become the club’s property. As early as the promotion to the higher division in the 2024 season, essential renovation work needs to be undertaken in this nearly 100-year-old arena; further improvements are planned for the future, such as increasing the total capacity, which is currently only about 13,600 seats.
Disneyland will serve as a model for future renovation work. According to the owners’ vision, the city, the region, and the club must be marketed as a single and the same entity. The goal is to create a lakeside park with a modern stadium and entertainment options, even on non-match days. “What the theme park represents for Disney is what the football club and the matchday experience represent for us. We are lucky to be in a place where the city itself is a brand: Lake Como is a global brand. It would be foolish not to seize this opportunity – to integrate football into the ecosystem, not as a centerpiece, but as a key element,” said the club president and Sent CEO Mirwan Suwarso to the Italian portal Calcio e Finanza.
Following the Disney model, Como 1907 should not only be a nouveau riche football club but a comprehensive and financially sustainable entertainment project – with the tourist region of Lake Como as its flagship brand. The goal is to connect football, marketing, merchandising, and the region, to attract celebrities, and to establish the club as a global brand focused on the experience.
It’s exciting because the contrasts couldn’t be greater. On one side, the “traditional character” of an idyllic small town with an ideal location by a lake; on the other, the owners’ ambitious global aspirations.
