Riccardo Silva

Riccardo Silva is an Italian businessman and investor. He is owner of Silva International Investments, which has investments in a range of companies across media, sports, entertainment, art, and real estate. He is also the president and co-owner of Miami FC, owner of the Silva family art collection, and previously served as CEO of the Milan Channel.

Riccardo Silva
Silva in September 2016
Born1970 (age 49–50)
EducationBocconi University, Tulane University
OccupationOwner of Silva International Investments
President and co-owner of Miami FC
Known forRiccardo Silva Stadium, MP & Silva, Miami FC, Americas Champions League and Select Model Management modelling agencies

Early life and education

Riccardo Silva was born in 1970 in Milan, the grandson of the founder of Italsilva – Gruppo Desa, one of Italy’s largest chemical groups. His maternal family, Fabbri, is known for its publishing company, Fabbri Editori, which is now part of the RCS Media Group. Silva completed his studies at Bocconi University and Tulane University.[1]

Early career

In 1998 Riccardo Silva launched MP Web, an internet start-up of the Milan-based Media Partners Group (now Infront Media), managing sports rights and content for mobile and Internet platforms, which first came to prominence in the 1990s.[1] In 2001 Riccardo Silva became CEO of Milan Channel, the official TV channel of AC Milan football club, and guided the international development of the channel.[2]

MP & Silva

From 2004 until 2016 Riccardo Silva owned and managed MP & Silva, a global international media rights company based in London. Under Riccardo’s leadership, MP & Silva became the world’s leading distributor of TV rights. In May 2016 Riccardo Silva and his partners sold MP & Silva to the Chinese groups Everbright Securities and Beijing Baofeng Technology, relinquishing management and operational control.

Silva International Investments

In 2016, Silva established Silva International Investments, a portfolio company which invests and manages assets in media, sport, fashion, technology, and real estate.[3]

Since its inception, the company have invested in Mast Capital, a Miami based real estate and development company[3] and has made a number of acquisitions, including a majority stake in Globe Soccer Awards.[4]

In August 2017, Silva International Investments acquired SportBusiness, who provide insight into businesses working in the sports industry throughout the world.[5][6]

In October 2019, the company acquired the London modeling agency, Select Model Management,[7] and announced a major global expansion driven through an integration with Silva International Investment's existing modelling agency network, MP Management.

Following MP Management's establishment in 2008 in Milan, the company acquired a second agency in Miami in 2014,[8] quickly followed with the acquisition of a third agency, Major Paris, in 2015. Under the ownership of Silva International Investments, the group continued to grow, with the acquisition of Elite Stockholm in 2017,[9] and in the same year, with the establishment of a strategic partnership with Modellink in Gothenburg. This was followed in 2018 with the acquisition of the Factor Chosen Group, [10] which brought into the network agencies in Chicago, Los Angeles and Atlanta. With the acquisition of Select, the network expanded to London, with the group now spanning eight agencies.

Miami FC

In May 2015, Riccardo Silva co-established Miami FC, which played in the North American Soccer League (NASL).[11]

During their time competing in the NASL, Miami FC captured the 2017 spring NASL title with a 7-0 win over the San Francisco Deltas,[12] and in October of that year, the club completed an historic double, becoming the first team in NASL history to win both the Spring and Autumn titles in the same season. In an interview with El Nuevo Herald Riccardo Silva stated that "The fact that we won the Spring and Autumn tournaments does not mean there are not more things that we have to fight for".[13]

In June 2017, Miami FC played their first competitive fixture against an MLS club, beating Orlando City SC 3-1 in the Lamar Hunt US Open Cup with Stefano Pinho scoring a hat-trick.[14] The Telegraph reported Riccardo Silva saying: “It was the biggest game in our short history so to win so convincingly against a fantastic club like Orlando City was a great result for us".[15]

Miami FC 2 were crowned 2018 NPSL National Champions in August 2018, defeating FC Motown (Morristown, NJ) 3-1 at Drew University’s Ranger Stadium.[16]

In July 2019, Miami FC won its sixth overall trophy, adding the NPSL Sunshine Conference to their list of honors, defeating Miami United FC 3-2 in the final.[17] August 2019 saw Miami FC add more titles to their trophy cabinet, winning the 2019 National Premier Soccer League (NPSL) title by recording a 3-1 victory over New York Cosmos.[18]

In September 2019, the team joined the National Independent Soccer Association (NISA), where they won their ninth trophy by winning the NISA East Coast Championship.[19]

On December 11, 2019, former USL Championship club Ottawa Fury FC announced that it had transferred its franchise rights to Miami FC ownership group, and the club would begin competition in the league in the 2020 season.[20]

In 2018, Miami FC announced the launch of its new Youth Academy Program. Miami FC Youth Academy Program will be dedicated to increasing opportunities for youth soccer players in South Florida to develop their skills and knowledge of the game.[21]

Riccardo Silva Stadium

In 2017, Silva made a $3.76 million donation to cover renovations of the team's home field, FIU Stadium at the Florida International University. It was subsequently announced that the stadium would be renamed Riccardo Silva Stadium for five years in recognition of his involvement.[22]

Other Footballing Interests
Riccardo Silva (center) with Ronaldo and Alessandro Nesta

Silva was involved in the project to establish the Americas Champions League (ACL)[23] tournament, which would involve teams from North America, South America and the Caribbean and was intended to become the all-Americas version of Europe’s popular UEFA Champions League.[24] The intention was for a 64-team competition to mirror the UEFA Champions League's format, which Silva estimated could generate $500 million in television and marketing rights - quintupling the current annual take-ins for the CONCACAF Champions League and CONMEBOL's Copa Libertadores combined.[23]

The plans to develop the ACL have been described as ‘a vehicle to help place the country at the forefront of game’,[25] a goal which Silva believes can be achieved.

In 2016, Silva's company, Silva International Investments, commissioned a report by Deloitte,[26][27] on promotion and relegation in United States professional soccer.[28][29] The report, published in November 2016, found that promotion and relegation could assist US club soccer[30] in capitalising on the potential for the sport in USA, but also stated it's still too early to consider such a system in the U.S. until some important questions are answered.[31][32]

In August 2017, Miami FC joined forces with the National Premier Soccer League's Kingston Stockade FC in filing a request for arbitration at the Court of Arbitration for Sport (CAS).[33][34][35][36][37][38][39][40]

Other business interests

Silva has other business interests in technology, fashion, and arts, including investments in technology company Muzik. In December 2017, a gallery at the Bass Museum of Art in Miami Beach was re-named the Riccardo and Tatyana Silva Gallery in recognition of the support they have given to the museum and the arts in general.[41] The Bass Museum focuses on exhibitions of international contemporary art; it presents mid-career and established artists reflecting the spirit and international character of Miami Beach. Tatyana sits on the board of directors of the museum.

Personal life

Riccardo Silva is married to Tatyana Silva[42], and they have two sons.

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References
  1. "Charging Bull - Sportcal". MP & Silva. Archived from the original on 2016-02-15. Retrieved 2016-02-08.
  2. "Riccardo Silva mixes business with pleasure at Miami FC". Telegraph.co.uk. Retrieved 2016-02-08.
  3. "Mast Capital gets new $1M-plus investor in Silva International". The Real Deal Miami. 2017-02-08. Retrieved 2017-02-21.
  4. LaPresse. "Silva International Investments Acquires Stake in Globe Soccer". www.prnewswire.com. Retrieved 2018-01-05.
  5. "SportBusiness Group acquisition closed by Silva International Investments". SportBusiness Group. 2017-08-04. Retrieved 2017-08-04.
  6. "SportBusiness Group establishes US operations". SportBusiness Group. 2018-02-26. Retrieved 2018-03-20.
  7. "Fashion Monitor". www.fashionmonitor.com. Retrieved 2019-10-23.
  8. "MP Network acquires Mega Model Management, Miami's leading talent agency". Brickell Tribune. Retrieved 2016-02-08.
  9. "MP Management invests in Modellink partnership and acquires Elite Stockholm modelling agency". www.efe.com. Retrieved 2017-06-15.
  10. Lockwood, Lisa (2018-02-02). "MP Management Acquires Factor Chosen Model Management". WWD. Retrieved 2018-02-06.
  11. "Miami twice? David Beckham certainly hopes so". The Telegraph. Retrieved 2016-04-22.
  12. "Miami FC captures NASL Spring title with 7-0 rout of San Francisco". miamiherald. Retrieved 2017-07-30.
  13. "El dueño del Miami FC afirma que el club aún debe luchar por más cosas". elnuevoherald. Retrieved 2017-11-01.
  14. sport, Guardian (2017-06-29). "Schweinsteiger falls and Nesta shines on night of shocks in US Open Cup". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 2017-07-30.
  15. "Miami FC revel in greatest win in club's history after handing Orlando City knockout blow". The Telegraph. Retrieved 2017-06-20.
  16. "Miami FC 2 Crowned 2018 NPSL National Champions – National Premier Soccer League". www.npsl.com. Retrieved 2018-10-31.
  17. "The Miami FC Comes from Behind to Capture Sunshine Conference Championship". National Premier Soccer League. 2019-07-14. Retrieved 2019-07-23.
  18. "The Miami FC Claims 2019 NPSL National Championship". National Premier Soccer League. 2019-08-04. Retrieved 2019-08-06.
  19. Carmenate, Achillies (2019-11-10). "Miami FC Wins NISA Eastern Conference Championship, 9th Trophy in Four Years". Sports News and Entertainment Outlet. Retrieved 2019-12-13.
  20. Staff, USLChampionship com (2019-12-11). "Ottawa Fury FC Announce Relocation, Sale of Franchise Rights to The Miami FC". USL Championship. Retrieved 2019-12-16.
  21. "The Miami FC Announces Launch of Youth Academy Program". www.miamifc.com. Retrieved 2018-12-19.
  22. "FIU Stadium gets facelift, new name after Miami FC owner gives record $3.76 million donation". Miami Herald. Retrieved 2018-10-11.
  23. "CONMEBOL, CONCACAF Champions League in the works - Riccardo Silva". ESPNFC.com. Retrieved 2016-02-08.
  24. "Exclusive: MP & Silva boss Riccardo Silva has grand plan for Americas Champions League". The Fields of Green. Retrieved 2016-02-25.
  25. "ONE World Sports :: Can Americas Champs League have success?". www.oneworldsports.com. Archived from the original on 2016-03-08. Retrieved 2016-03-07.
  26. "Building the soccer pyramid: Deloitte report makes case for promotion and relegation in USA". The Telegraph. Retrieved 2017-01-13.
  27. "Breaking: Deloitte Report Suggests Promotion & Relegation Would Be Positive For US Soccer". Midfield Press. Retrieved 2017-01-13.
  28. "Marcotti: Riccardo Silva on pro/rel in the U.S." ESPN.com. Retrieved 2017-10-16.
  29. "Miami, Riccardo Silva leader diritti tv parla di Totti, Nesta e "anche in America promozioni e retrocessioni"" (in Italian). Retrieved 2017-09-07.
  30. "Promotion-relegation a good idea in the U.S down the road - study". ESPNFC.com. Retrieved 2017-01-13.
  31. "Professional club soccer in the USA | Deloitte UK". Deloitte United Kingdom. Retrieved 2017-01-13.
  32. "Pirlo: "Ciao calcio, sono vecchio. Ma non è scattata la scintilla per la panchina"". La Gazzetta dello Sport - Tutto il rosa della vita (in Italian). Retrieved 2017-10-10.
  33. "NASL vs MLS. Silva: "Così non va, voglio le promozioni" | SoccerItalia.it". www.socceritalia.it (in Italian). Retrieved 2017-10-06.
  34. "Stati Uniti: New York Cosmos e il Miami di Nesta a rischio chiusura". La Gazzetta dello Sport - Tutto il rosa della vita (in Italian). Retrieved 2017-10-06.
  35. "Miami, Kingston Stockade Take U.S. Soccer to Arbitration". Empire of Soccer. Retrieved 2017-08-22.
  36. "Miami FC taking U.S. pro/rel fight to court". ESPN.com. Retrieved 2017-08-22.
  37. "MLS stands alone as a closed shop in the world of football. Meet the two men trying to change that". The Independent. 2018-03-02. Retrieved 2018-03-20.
  38. "Fifa called to enforce relegation in MLS after receiving letter". The Independent. 2019-03-19. Retrieved 2019-04-03.
  39. "Mls, sarà rivoluzione? Il Tas decide su retrocessioni e promozioni". La Gazzetta dello Sport - Tutto il rosa della vita (in Italian). Retrieved 2019-05-15.
  40. "Riccardo Silva, il ricorso al Tas che rischia di cambiare il calcio mondiale: "L'America accetti le regole della Fifa o si rischiano leghe private"". www.leggo.it (in Italian). Retrieved 2019-05-15.
  41. Greenberger, Alex (2017-12-21). "Riccardo and Tatyana Silva Donate $500,000 to the Bass in Miami". ARTnews. Retrieved 2018-01-12.
  42. "Riccardo & Tatyana Silva Celebrate Bass Museum of Art's New Building Renovation - World Red Eye". World Red Eye. Retrieved 2016-02-08.
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