“This is a project that we had for some time with ‘Kony’ and ‘Ale’ and we are very excited to make it a reality. We thank the city of Miami. South Florida is a great place to continue to build the rugby community. Rugby is growing in the region and we want to join a professional team: Mami Sharks. We are big fans of Miami.” with these words Marcos Galperin formalized its entry into sports business in the United States. But in his new project he is not alone. To buy the team’s franchise, the owner of Mercado Libre partnered with two important Argentine businessmen: Alexander MacFarlane and Ronaldo “Kony” Strazzolini.
The official launch was on April 26 at the Faena Theater in Miami Beach. Among the 300 guests at the event, figures such as the businessman did not go unnoticed Nicholas Caputothe athlete Juan Manuel del Potro and the Argentine consul in Miami, Leandro Fernandez Suarez. the bet of Galperin -considered by Forbes as the richest Argentine today- required an investment of US$7 million.
partners and friends
Galperin, Strazzolini and MacFarlane They share a passion for this sport. The owner of Free market He assured at the launch that his objective is “to work with the community on the values of rugby, hard work and fair competition, respect for the rules, the referee and the opponent.” But, in addition, the three have in common that they are more than influential businessmen at the highest level of national business.
MacFarlane He is a businessman whose main interest is in the energy sector. He was the CEO of Edenor and is currently in charge of the group that controls Camuzzi Gas Pampeana. Despite his low media profile, everyone in the red circle knows him, above all, because of his historical link with Mauricio Filibertione of the co-owners of Edenor, with whom he bought planes to create the Patagonia Jet air taxi company. One of the few times that his name covered the press was during the World Cup, since he was one of those who traveled with the former president Mauricio Macri to Qatar.
Strazzolini moves in a similar environment. It is one of the main shareholders of Inversora Gas del Centro together with Guillermo Pablo Reca and Gonzalo Peres Moore, who in turn are members of the board of Distrilec Inversora SA, the firm that controls 56.3 percent of Edesur’s capital. Like MacFarlane, “Kony” is also a character close to macrismo. In 2019, he shared the administration of KCR Pacheco with Nicholas Caputo and their daughters, Sonia and Maria. And in 2023 her name also appears in Iversa SA, also together with that of caputo, Peres Moore and other businessmen linked to Together for Change.
Galperin and their new sports partners were enthusiastic about the project and took the opportunity to invite other friends to their event. In the images they released were Marcelo Bosch, Patricia Pommiez, Marina Frederking and Martin Migoya of Globant; John Bruchouformer Chairman of Citibank and current CEO of Brubank; Edgardo Defortuna, Chairman of Fortune International Group; and Gabriel Martinoformer Chairman of HSBC and partner of the BFLInvest Fund.
Miami Sharks Launch
Singer Sara Packiam was the host of the launch event that included music, food and the drawing of three t-shirts. But they were not only Galperin and their partners on stage. Among those who spoke were Jose Pellicenahired to be the coach of the new team, and the former player Juan Martin Hernandez, summoned to be the ambassador of the club. Los Pumas scrum half, Sebastian CubelliHe has already been signed to join, but since he is still in France he sent his greetings through a video.
Strazzolini took a moment to especially thank the early sponsors of miami sharks. In particular he greeted Juan Napolifrom Banco de Valores Valo, already gabriel ruiz, Augustine Pozzoli and the family pescarmona of the financial advisor BlockToro, present at the event.
The partners clarified that part of their challenges is to add sponsors. The followers of miami sharksOn this occasion, they had different types of subscription: the VIP option -which included an invitation to the Faena Theater event, a t-shirt, tickets for two people to see eight games and a founding member certificate- was sold for US$ 2,500, and the The option that only included tickets cost US$ 250. On February 15, 2024, the team will debut in Major League Rugby. GalperinIn the middle of the event, he decided that it was time to start collecting money and told the guests that they could also collaborate with the team: “I want to remind you that if you want to support us, season tickets are being sold at the entrance.”
