The president of the Azzurri in his second home: “To all Neapolitans I simply say that our team will remain where it deserves, at the top”
Even from here, from the silent hills of Beverly Hills, among the avenues with palm trees and villas hidden behind monumental gates, you can hear Maradona’s scream. Aurelio De Laurentiis listens to him clearly from this magnificent and placid residence in Los Angeles, filled with friends and celebrities in recent days: he saw the NBA Finals with Danny De Vito and is enjoying the World Cup with fellow producer Tarak Ben Ammar. Even in the American version and as an honorary citizen of Los Angeles, ADL remains above all a president at work with a precise mission: to try to immediately bring the scudetto back to Napoli. He will soon return to Italy to announce the arrival of Max Allegri, still taboo in public conversations, and focus on the transfer market, but in the midst of the World Cup, from this sofa, he can indulge in some general reflections on the state of our football and his club.
President, this is Los Angeles, it’s as if it were a home World Cup for you: are you following it?
“Of course, I’m watching the matches with my wife, my collaborators and some friends. I saw Switzerland-Bosnia live at SoFi to honor my wife Jacqueline’s nation. Extraordinary stadium, perfect welcome. Great organization also in traffic and parking, all without queues. I also just saw Belgium-Iran to greet Kevin De Bruyne and Romelu Lukaku, two Napoli players. The United States, on the other hand, only on TV: they are a very interesting team…”.
What impression is the way the US is organizing such a global event making on you?
“It’s incredible. Despite the very high prices, the stadiums, even those with 70,000 seats, are always packed even on weekdays. The message we can take away is that, even in America, what they call soccer here can become something really important.”
Indeed, American football has grown a lot: what is the distance between the American leagues and European football today?
“The distance is represented by the obligation to pay a very high franchise to also be part of the MLS and to have some important requirements to participate. In addition to the fact that there are no relegations. I think that European football is unable to cover its costs and that it is collapsing due to budgets in crisis. The whole system should be radically revised and behave like years in the NBA. They stopped for a total reflection and then started again stronger than before, managing to valorise the 30 clubs with figures varying from 3.5 billion to 10 billion dollars for individual clubs.”
Even in America, what they call soccer here can become something really important
The Americans turn every match into an event, you can see it here too. Are we still so far from this entertainment culture in Serie A?
“Let’s get out of a big misunderstanding: football understood as a sports and entertainment industry or just sports? If it is a sports and entertainment industry, as I and many others believe, it should make a real balance between costs and revenues, containing costs as much as possible and increasing revenues as much as possible. To make it more spectacular we should build new stadiums. Those that exist are too old, obsolete…”.
What would be needed on this topic?
“An economic aid from the state, without ifs or buts, because we should never forget that football moves 28 million voters. Conversely, the brake on the growth of football in Italy will be ever greater. And then de-bureaucratize, de-bureaucratize, de-bureaucratize. Abolish in one fell swoop all the rules that limit and slow down the construction of new facilities. Prevent municipalities, superintendencies and higher bodies from hindering the construction, under the direction of the super commissioner for the stadiums, elected but not yet fully operational, who can monitor the quality of the projects. On the reforms necessary to improve football, let’s be clear: there is not just one, but this is what is missing, because everything should be reset and the system re-founded in a way that looks to the future and generational changes”.
In 2012 you said that football would end up in the hands of the Arabs or, in any case, in foreign hands: you were right… Is there a risk that European football will gradually lose control of its own destiny?
“From 2017 to today I have received various interests for Napoli and I have refused several billions… Now we should aim for fantastic national championships with a smaller number of teams, but with economic and financial capabilities and important catchment areas, and we should also consider the European and world club championships important, always finding ways that protect the health of the players, who should never risk their safety by playing too many matches. I am therefore not worried if funds were to acquire European clubs. The concern if anything, it is that these acquisitions can take place in a stale context, without looking to the future”.
Staying with this country, what do you see in America today? Is Los Angeles a place of work, inspiration, or simply a second home?
“It’s a second home. When I return to Los Angeles I feel a feeling of true freedom, and respect for those who are successful and pay taxes. There is no envy or resentment for those who know how to work and achieve great results.”
Even here in LA the Neapolitans are everywhere: what will their team be like in 2026-27?
“Napoli will be, as always, strong, competitive and attractive. Imagine that here in San Pedro there is a community of 30,000 Napoli fans. When the film of the last scudetto was screened at the Egyptian Theater in Hollywood, the reactions were exciting. Well, to all Neapolitans I simply say that our team will remain where it deserves, at the top.”
The new coach has not been announced, although everyone knows who he will be… In any case, what characteristics should the man who will sit on the Napoli bench have?
“I ask the next coach to have a great personality, humility and enthusiasm. Napoli is a healthy and strong club, with a squad that lacks nothing and that if it hadn’t suffered dozens of injuries it would certainly have fought for the scudetto until the end.”
After two such intense years with two trophies, how did you part ways with Antonio Conte?
“With Antonio there is a family relationship that will remain intact over time. I repeat, the team is strong and will remain so.”
Seeing the World Cup without Italy is painful: in summary, is the problem technical, cultural or managerial?
“I have been hearing about the reduction of the Serie A championship to 18 teams for about 10 years. I have already said several times that today we play too much. There is not enough time to train the national team. If we reduced the championships to 16 teams we would already begin to reduce the number of matches from the current 380 to 240, therefore 140 less than now. We would have two months available at the end of the championship to truly prepare a national team worthy of competing at the highest levels. I am sure that Malagò he will be the right person in the right place and will also be able to solve the various problems affecting Serie A, as well as find solutions for the Azzurri.”
To close, after so many years as president, what is your real mission now?
“The next few years will have to be dedicated to solving two important problems: stadium ownership and sports centre. Two problems that will completely occupy me in the near future. When I think of Naples, however, I think of the most beautiful colour, that blue color which joins the sea and sky to the horizon, making them become an inimitable immensity.”
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