Over the course of his career, Gino Pozzo and his family have already accomplished a great deal. As a member of the prominent Pozzo family based in Italy, he owns a sports investment group that is primarily focused on football. It’s been something of a passion in his life for as long as he could remember, and a few years go he finally made his dream come true: he became the managing director and legal owner of Watford Football Club.
As if he weren’t already living his life in the public eye, his relationship with Watford has made this especially true. Now, rumors are swirling about exactly what Gino Pozzo will do to grow the team over the next decade and beyond – rumors that are more than worth exploring in more ways than one.
Watford Football Club: The Story So Far
For those unfamiliar, the Watford Football Club actually dates all the way back to 1881 – making it 142 years old. After a series of financial struggles at the turn of the century, Watford did have some success over the coming decade. It was in June 2012 that then-owner Laurence Bassini sold the club to the Pozzo family, with Gino Pozzo reportedly taking an active role in the day-to-day interests of the club.
The results were on display almost immediately. During the 2012/2013 season, for example, the team finished third in the Championship. They reached the play-off final where they were unfortunately defeated.
Things continued to improve from there. Watford finished second in the Championship season of 2020/2021. Now, as football fans are prone to doing, people are speculating about exactly what the future holds for their beloved club.
First, despite talk to the contrary, Gino Pozzo has emphatically stated that he does not plan on selling Watford. It had been rumored for some time that he had planned to move back to Italy, where he was born and spent many of his formative years. People assumed that doing so would allow him to play the same active role in Udinese – Watford’s sister club – that he had shown an aptitude for over the last ten years. This appears to not be the case.
Officials, including the chairman of Watford Scott Duxbury, have said that not only is Gino Pozzo NOT trying to sell the club, but he has absolutely no intention of doing so. Instead, he is continually focused on the further development of Watford, starting with stadium development.
To speak to that point, it has been said that Gino Pozzo and the rest of his team are looking into two distinct strategy. First, they are more than willing to continue the development of the stadium through various financing efforts. However, they would much prefer to find a minority investor who has an active interest in stadium development itself.
In related news, it was reported in late 2022 that Gino seemed to be ready to buy the Spanish football club Sabadell. Now, it appears that these rumors were accurate. Industry newspapers have said that a deal was “on the verge of closing,” which would see Gino Pozzo take control of the club that plays in Spain’s Primera Division RFEF.
Not only that, but it has been speculated that an American investor – one who has yet to be named – would be an active participant in the takeover.
Born and raised in Italy, Gino Pozzo began his career with a focus on talent scouting. His parents owned a successful woodcarving and appliance business, which allowed them to purchase ownership in their first local football club. Over the years, that club improved in a positive, appreciable way – at which point the Pozzo dynasty was born.
Gino Pozzo graduated from college in the United States, earning his degree from the esteemed Harvard Business School. It was then that he returned to Italy. Instead of taking over the family team at the time, he decided that he wanted to both follow in his father’s footsteps and strike it out on his own. With that, his decision to purchase ownership of the Watford Football Club was solidified.
See about Gino Pozzo on https://www.thefuturepositive.com/blog/gino-pozzo-owner-watford-football-club/
