The president: “We’re enjoying Cesc. Big companies don’t ask their managers when they’re leaving. Our merchandising is based on the lake and not just on the soccer team”
“To improve on last year’s tenth-place finish from a sporting standpoint. To increase revenue and boost the value of our players.”
Mirwan Suwarso welcomes us in person at the headquarters of Sent Entertainment, the company that controls Como 1907 through the Darjum Group, the Indonesian conglomerate owned by the Hartono brothers. His look is casual—sweater and sneakers—just like the atmosphere in the open-plan office, where young people are working or eating their meals in the break area. “I didn’t sleep much last night,” the president begins.
The adrenaline from the big win against Roma?
“No, I stayed up late; I met with a lot of people. For me, for us, it was just another game. There’s no pressure because right now we’ve already far exceeded our goal.”
Which was…?
“To improve on last year’s tenth-place finish from a sporting standpoint. To increase revenue and boost the value of the players.”
Have you already spoken with the owners, and how directly involved are they in the project?
“Yes, this morning (yesterday, ed.) I spoke with one of the owners. They’re happy too. But I’ll say it again: this is just a small sporting achievement within a long-term project. We’re still in the startup phase. Everything we did in Serie B no longer works in Serie A. Every time you change divisions, you have to start from scratch, and we’ve already done that three times. Soccer is different from other businesses, where you make an investment and then calculate the years it will take to see a return. We’re looking at the market; we’ve invested heavily over three transfer windows. But last January, we only signed one player. So the level of investment is decreasing because we’ve already laid the foundation. The ownership is looking five or six years ahead. Because emotions then risk influencing decisions, and that’s not good from a sustainability standpoint.”
By the way, financial fair play will be in effect in Europe.
“At the moment, we’re about 75 million below the UEFA ceiling. It’s also worth noting that there’s no case study quite like ours—a club that, within two years, went from returning to Serie A after more than 20 years to qualifying for Europe. However, revenues are growing significantly, and this leads us to believe that in two or three years we’ll be able to meet the financial fair play requirements. For teams entering European competition for the first time or after a long absence, such a margin is allowed.”
Is it true that you bought Como just to film documentaries for Indonesian TV?
“Yes. We were doing a show on Indonesian youth national teams that had high ratings. At first, the idea was to integrate the kids into Italian soccer. But when Como was promoted to Serie C, the technical level became unsustainable for them, and we could no longer cover the costs.
But we saw potential in the sports business.”
Explain that further.
“I’ll try. Como is a small city with a team that spent 15 years in the lower leagues, located right next to giants like Inter, Milan, and Juve. At first, most people in Como rooted for those teams. So we asked ourselves how we could build a business around a small fan base while still maintaining a competitive team. We asked ourselves: ‘What is Como known for, aside from soccer? The lake, so let’s build everything around that.’ We have 5 million tourists who come for the lake every year. So we ventured into retail, consumer products like beer, apparel, summer camps, tour operators… and we invested in creating a retail company to develop merchandise based on Lake Como and not just on Como soccer. And this has worked so well that, at the moment, Como jerseys account for only 40% of our merchandising revenue. We also realize that our retail division, with Rhude as a brand partner, allows us to grow globally more quickly than Como could on its own. We have therefore offered this partnership to 11 other soccer teams as well, so that we can increase our revenue through the activities of other clubs. Only in this way can we become self-sufficient.“
What is the status of the stadium?
”We have completed the first phase of documentation. Now we have to resubmit a design based on the Superintendency’s assessments. It will be more efficient from a cost-benefit perspective. And a bit smaller, but we’d like there to be spaces for the community as well, usable year-round not only by tourists or fans but also by residents themselves.”
To play cup matches there already?
“We’re working on it. The main thing will be to convert the stands from temporary to permanent structures, as UEFA requires. And to do so by the end of the summer. Then meet all the other requirements.”
Fabregas is the key figure in all of this. If you make it to Europe next year, will you want to enjoy what he’s managed to achieve?
“Cesc is a bit like a CEO in the soccer world. In big companies, you don’t just ask a manager when he wants to leave. We’re happy he’s with us, but we know anything can happen in life. We’re enjoying the moment. We’ve created a system where we believe that even if he leaves, it won’t bring everything crashing down.”
Will Nico Paz stay as well?
“The decision rests solely with Real Madrid. There’s nothing we can do but wait and act accordingly. We’ll be happy for him regardless and will start working to find a replacement. For now, he’s doing great here, in this big family.”
Will Nico Paz stay? The decision rests solely with Real Madrid.
Mirwan Suwarso
President of Como
What do you like most about Italian soccer?
“The passion of the people.”
What do you think of the referees?
“I don’t complain; they’re part of the game. It’s a very difficult job, where you risk being insulted, and it’s almost hard to understand how someone would choose to do it.”
Where do you see Como in five years?
“It’s hard for me to look that far ahead right now. I’d like the club to be self-sustaining. And for it to continue bringing happiness and opportunities to so many people.”
