A Multi-Club Owner in Conversation: Matt Rizzetta, American Money and Southern Italian Pride

I've said something like this before: I believe the means of global soccer production should be controlled by fans, players and the community the club is in, collectively or cooperatively, and not by firms and companies based half a world away from the clubs in question. So, this podcast is not a natural avenue for an American multi-club owner of European clubs to share his story. In an exception to that pattern, here is a conversation with Matt Rizzetta, an owner of - precisely - a company (named North Sixth Group, in New York) that controls clubs half a world away. Most of our conversation looks behind the scenes of his involvement in Campobasso FC, in Italy's 3rd league, from questions over how investors find clubs in the first place to whether he could rename the club. While I believe I went in with a level of empathy, I also asked perhaps the most critical questions I’ve asked a guest yet, and what resulted was an interesting and respectful conversation.And: you can WIN a copy of David Kilpatrick's lovely short book 95 Theses on the reformation of Football. I'll tell you how a few minutes into the episode. HELPFUL LINKS FOR THIS EPISODE: Campobasso FC official websiteBrooklyn FC and Project Underdog's websiteMatt Rizzetta on InstagramForbes Magazine on Campobasso's Hollywood investors and on Campobasso's promotionNEW: send me a text message! (I'd love to hear your thoughts - texts get to me anonymously, without charge or signup) Please leave a quick voicemail with any feedback, corrections, suggestions - or just greetings - HERE. Or comment via Twitter, Instagram, Bluesky or Facebook. If you enjoy this podcast and think that what I do fills a gap in soccer coverage that others would be interested in as well, pleaseRecommend The Assistant Professor of Football. Spreading the word, through word of mouth, truly does help. Leave some rating stars at the podcast platform of your choice. There are so many sports podcasts out there, and only ratings make this project visible; only then can people who look for a different kind of take on European soccer actually find me.Artwork for The Assistant Professor of Football is by Saige LindInstrumental music for this podcast, including the introduction track, is by the artist Ketsa and used under a Creative Commons license through Free Music Archive: https://freemusicarchive.org/music/Ketsa/