UGP Leads €2 Billion Napoli Fc Offer to De Laurentiis Family
An American consortium has made an offer in the region of €2 billion for napoli fc, setting up a major bid for the club owned by the De Laurentiis family. The proposal is led by Underdog Global Partners and includes a commitment to invest in infrastructure, including a plan to privatise and redevelop the Stadio Diego Maradona.
De Laurentiis And Napoli Fc
Aurelio De Laurentiis has owned Napoli since 2004, when he rescued the club from bankruptcy in September 2004 while it was in the third tier. Since then he has ended a 33-year wait for the league title in 2023 and won two Scudetti, three Coppe Italia and one Super Coppa.
That record explains why the approach lands as a real test of ambition rather than a routine market check. Napoli is not for sale, and De Laurentiis has not indicated that the club is available.
Underdog Global Partners Bid
The negotiations began six months ago, with UGP leading talks on behalf of a group of investors. UGP is the majority owner of Campobasso and bought a controlling stake in Napoli Basketball last May, giving it an existing foothold in Italian sport before turning to Napoli Fc.
The group also intends to apply for an NBA Europe franchise ahead of a targeted 2027 launch. On the football side, the offer would join ownership of the club with a redevelopment push at the Stadio Diego Maradona, a rare combination in a Serie A deal.
Serie A Foreign Ownership
The approach arrives in a league where foreign money is already common. Eleven clubs in Serie A are foreign owned, and nine of those are North American owned; Cagliari is 49 per cent held by an American consortium, Venezia has drawn additional U.S. investment from Tim Leiweke, and Fininvest sold its stake in Monza to Beckett Layne Ventures last year.
UGP said: “We do not comment on rumour and speculation.” For Napoli fans, that leaves the sale pitch on one side and the club’s ownership line on the other, with the stadium plan sitting at the center of what the bidders are trying to buy into.
