Six years ago an Indonesian tobacco company called the Djarum Group purchased a Serie D club in Northern Italy and no one really cared about it. All the World knew of Como was that it was a beautiful town on the side of a lake and sometimes some rich film stars got married nearby.
Fast forward to today and the World of football, and celebrity, knows very much what’s going on at Como 1907. The club had actually just won promotion from Serie D when it was acquired and although Italian football has banned tobacco advertising, the owners have stuck at it.
As of 2022 the company, owned by brothers Robert Budi Hartono and Michael Bambang Hartono, earns around €4m per hour. 2022 was the year that Como turned professional again, and also the year that Cesc Fabregas and Thierry Henry joined on as minority shareholders.
In the 2023/24 season, Fabregas was appointed as manager, replacing Moreno Longo midway through the season. Como ended the season promoted in second position, finally returning to Serie A after a long absence but with a few questions hanging over the squad. Fabregas didn’t yet have his UEFA license so he had to initially act as assistant manager under Welshman Osian Roberts, and would their stadium be up to it.
As of now, both questions have been answered and Fabregas is now in sole charge and the Singaglia is used in Serie A. After an initial wobbly start last season, they finished strongly and were firmly in mid table when the campaign ended. Their young and dynamic squad was balanced with some (very) old heads and the club seems on the up.
Which is precisely why Inter Milan came calling for Cesc Fabregas when Simone Inzaghi left for Al Hilal. Then something strange happened. Fabregas said no – to one of the biggest clubs in Europe. Apparently he firmly believed in the “project” at Como. Now, all football teams claim to have a project – except possibly Manchester United – but very rarely does a young, promising coach who played at the very top turn down a chance to go back there to coach. So what is the project?
According to the owners and their own message, they initially aim to transfer Como into a stable Serie A side, challeging mid-table and eventually targeting Europe. Their emphasis, oddly enough for the richest owners in the league, is to build long-term infrastructure with a brand new youth academy, a stadium overhaul and financial growth.
Don’t take my “oddly enough” as scepticism, this is the kind of club ownership I much prefer to see. Gradual, sustainable growth. But so far the Djarum Group has been able to temper anything boring and sustainable with some star quality. Fabregas and Henry bring high-profile influence, especially where recruitment is concerned.
And it isn’t just on the pitch where star names are having their heads turned. This season the Singaglia crowd has been a who’s who of A List celebrities, with Terry Crews, Kate Beckinsale, Kiera Knightly, Jeff Goldblum and Benedict Cumberbatch spotted taking in a game. They aren’t out there wielding flares with the Ultras either, they’re paying top dollar for hospitality.
Como is cool. This kind of reputation will be invaluable to sustaining manageable growth in the accounts department. Fabregas himself said when he rejected Inter that he’s part of a “£1bn plan”. Ambition underlined.
The club is investing heavily in scouting talent too, with young players the name of the game. They can offer both resale value and sporting impact during their tenure. Nico Paz and Max Perrone underline this point.
The ownership group has actually compared themselves to Atalanta by stating they want to organise an “Atalanta style youth to first team pipeline”. I don’t think a club of Como’s size could ever attract the World’s best, the huge stars, normally – but their beautiful riviera style lakeside location will go a long way towards this. But perhaps their best chance of a Scudetto lands within their own youth system. Developing and nurturing the best talent with the best facilities and the best coaches is definitely possible.
And that’s well within their mid to long term goals at the club. Infrastructure is key for the owners. The training and youth facilities but also the stadium.
I’ve been to the Singaglia and it has a gorgeous location, right on the lakeside. The old stadium, however, is looking rather dated. And while I’m a bit of a traditionalist, even I can see it needs modernising.
Even this process Como are looking to do in a manageable and sustainable way. In February this year, the club and the municipality submitted the planning documents. As you can imagine with bureaucracy in Italy, it’s going to happen slowly. Design approvals and public consultancy will take over a year and finish around May 2026.
They then hope to begin construction over a year later again in October 2027 to finish in time for the start of the 2028/29 season. Long term, the goal is to reach 15,000 seats, that can be increased easily to 20,000 if required. However, local planning revisions are trying to cap them at 14,000 and no taller stand that 19m.
Local heritage and scenic protection rules mandate a careful balance, they want to build big, but they need to preserve views of the lake and the war memorial on the banks. Naturally, support from the terraces for the new stadium is huge, but less so amongst the “Academic Intelligentsia” local to Como. In fact, 111 intellectuals signed a letter calling for the club to relocate outside of the town or abandon their plans altogether.
This debate will rumble on, while on the pitch Como are only limited by their own imagination. Commercially, they’re going about the process in a smart way. With the Hollywood fan base, the beautiful setting and the young coaches and players, sponsors are tripping over themselves to throw money at this project.
If Como can keep their feet on the ground, the sky’s the limit for them. Will they ever win a Scudetto. As mentioned, provincial teams rarely get a go at it. Even Parma in the 1990s spent erratically and couldn’t get it right. Como has a chance, they’re in a great location, with money to burn if they want to and they’ve got something most provincial teams don’t have. They’re cool.
On the wonderful Italian Football Podcast, Nima said he didn’t think they could ever win a Scudetto. I’m not so sure…
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