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Full Episode - The Interview: Joe Tacopina (Ep. 55)
162 Plays5 years ago
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Transcript
Introduction and Podcast Promotion
00:00:01
Speaker
Welcome to the Italian football podcast with John Solano, Carlo Garganese and Nima Tuvali.
00:00:24
Speaker
Hello, everybody, and welcome back to another interview episode of the Italian football podcast. We hope you are doing well and staying safe wherever you are in the world. Before I introduce our next guest, just a brief reminder, if you want to get access to all of the episodes of the Italian football podcast, you can go to patreon.com slash T I F P to become a member for only two 99 per month.
00:00:50
Speaker
that gets you access to not only all of the episodes of the podcast, but also our written work. You can also help participate in the shows by asking questions to our guests and so much more. So again, patreon.com slash T I F P. All right. Very excited to welcome on our next guest here of the Italian football
Guest Introduction: Joe Tacopina
00:01:09
Speaker
podcast. This is a gentleman who entered the world of cultural
00:01:12
Speaker
in 2011 as an executive of Roma. He then spent time at Bologna. Most recently, he was the president of Seria B side Venezia. And now he is in talks to potentially acquire Seria Chi side Katanya. Very excited to welcome onto the podcast, Joe Takopina. Joe, thank you so much for coming on. How are you? Good, John. How are you?
00:01:35
Speaker
I'm doing great. Thank you again for coming on. This is very, very exciting. So let's just jump right into it because we will talk about all the stuff that you're involved in now to potentially acquire Katanya later. But let's just start out at the top. You're going on what now? Almost a decade of being involved in Italian football? Is that right or is it over a decade?
Joe's Journey into Italian Football
00:01:55
Speaker
We had no attack. Well, actually, the first venture started in 2008 with George Soros and Roma. You know, we took that initial run at AS Roma back in 2000, started in 2008. That obviously didn't end well. We ended with the necessity sort of pointing out the last second and George walking away from that, which was a pity. But then, you know, we got a call back from Unicredit. I remember getting a call back from Unicredit in 2010 saying, you want to try again. And I was like,
00:02:25
Speaker
Yeah, I'd love to try again, except am I going to be dealing with stability? You know, stable people should be dealing with it. We're dealing with us. So all of you, you know, and I.
00:02:35
Speaker
started down a road that ended up with the closing of the Ash-Roma deal in 2011 with my group that I brought in, which was at the time, I put together a group of mostly Bostonians headed by Tom DiBenedetto. And then Polana was one of the investors, obviously, in that group and subsequently became president after DiBenedetto left. But that was one of the proudest days of my life for sure, being raised a Roma fan. My father was born in Roma.
00:03:04
Speaker
It really meant a lot to me, so it was a special day. All right, so that's actually the perfect segue to our next question, and that is going to be asked, Joe, on behalf of one of our patrons, Sabrina. So let me bring her on very quickly so she can ask you her question. Hi, my name is Sabrina, and I've got a question for
Q&A: Business Differences between Italy and US
00:03:22
Speaker
Joe. Since taking over Benitzia, the success of the club, both on the pitch and off of it, specifically things like social media, have been really impressive.
00:03:31
Speaker
So I just wanted to know what are the biggest differences between doing business in Italy and doing business in the United States? Thank you. And Joe, if I could just add to that, the question that I have to add on to what Sabrina said, you know, why Italy? Couldn't you easily make more money in, you know, the Premier League La Liga? Yeah, well, there was a couple of things. I'll tell you what, it didn't start out as me wanting to do anything in Italian football other than I was in Italy for work. I was doing some work.
00:04:00
Speaker
for one of the most important Italian families in the world doing some legal work as a lawyer. And, you know, I always try to schedule my trips, so I'd be there over a weekend, you know, accidentally, so I could go to a game, you know. So I remember going to the Olympic, go to see a derby. Montelis scored four goals that game. And I remember just being absolutely blown away by what I experienced, which was a passion that I never
00:04:28
Speaker
really felt in any North American sports arena, which was something that really got me, really got to me. And I felt the, you know, for two hours, the foundation of the stadium was moving with the Roma fans. And it was something that I said, my God, I want to be a part of this. I want to do something here. This is a passion, you know, came out of me that I really have never experienced in any sporting event before.
Investment Potential in Italian Football
00:04:51
Speaker
So, you know, I wanted to do something. And then when I started, you know, I weren't experts like Inner Circle Sports and
00:04:57
Speaker
and your sports banks to sort of guide me. And what I became very obvious very quickly was that Italian football teams are the most undervalued property in all of sport. I mean, just think about what I'm about to say and let that stick around your head for a little bit. We closed on AS Roma, purchased AS Roma at an enterprise value in 2011 of 110 million euros.
00:05:25
Speaker
When you think about that, there are player contracts that are more than 110 million euros. That included owning AS Roma, Trigoria. There was a guy named Tocci on the team at the time. You may remember him. I mean, like 110 million euros was the enterprise value. The teams like in America around that time, like the Los Angeles Clippers sold for $2 billion. And the Los Angeles Clippers are the second team in Los Angeles. They don't own their own arena. They've never won anything.
00:05:53
Speaker
And yet they were selling for 2 billion, Astromo was at 110 million euros. So I said, I was able to convince people, including Pilata and others, that there's something here. These properties are undervalued. And with the right business model, a North American sports business model, where you're really focusing on a lot of things that aren't really focused on in
00:06:13
Speaker
the Italian football, you know, you could make this a sustainable business. And that's really what my sort of takeaway was. But yes, first and foremost, I wouldn't have purchased a team anywhere. I mean, look, my love for Italy is so strong. You know, my parents being from Italy, you know, that meant a lot to me. I love the culture. I love the country. I love being there. You know, one of the proudest days of my life is when I became a Naica Cavalieri.
00:06:40
Speaker
in Italy. So, you know, it means a lot to me. And that's why I focused on that. Did you have a favorite Italian player and any specific player? I mean, I'm thinking if it's a Roma, was it like Bruno Conti or someone like that? Or Janini even, or someone, you know? Yeah. Yeah. It was, it was Conti. It was, but the guy that, you know, even though it was a little later in my, my, you know, I looked, I loved, I loved Maldini. Okay. I love the course. I loved, you know, but AC.
00:07:10
Speaker
uh, from Boston or even though it wasn't Italian. But, but, you know, the guy that really got me the most, um, aside from a guy who became my, one of my dear friends, Gigi Buffon, putting him aside, the guy who got me the most because I just love the way he played. And I look for players today who exemplify what he did was get too. So Reno, get too. So, um, he was someone who would rather die on the field than lose a game.
00:07:37
Speaker
and would leave it all on the field. And those are the players, to me, you can't get enough of. So that was the guy that I really adored. Obviously, Skillachi, you know, being a Sicilian was also another
00:07:53
Speaker
um all right so another question that i'm dying to ask you that i think you can add a pretty unique perspective on is you spend a lot of time like myself in between either the the united states for me the sporting experience regardless of the specific sport basketball nba american football hockey baseball whatever it is
00:08:18
Speaker
It just seems like the sporting experience, the marketing, the infrastructure such as stadiums behind these sports, again, it doesn't matter the specific one. But when you compare that to Italy, it just seems like they are so far ahead. So I'm dying to know from you, how does how does Italian football get to not even that level, but near that level?
Improving Italian Football Infrastructure
00:08:42
Speaker
Is it because I hear people say something as simple as, oh, well, we need better stadiums.
00:08:47
Speaker
Is it really that easy? Because I feel like that's maybe too simple of an answer. Great question. And it's one that obviously we ask and when I speak to investors, they ask, at least the savvy ones ask. And the answer is it's not there's not one thing. So it's a bunch of things. And one you did mention, though, it is infrastructure stadiums. I mean, that's for sure. Look, here's the bottom line. I used to go to any city that I could get to when I was nearly four.
00:09:16
Speaker
And I've been to the Del Alpe many times. And Juventus were some of the greatest teams like in our lifetime. You know, Del Piero, Zidane, Conte, all these great players. That Del Alpe was, you know, two-thirds empty because it was horrific, because it was a big bowl, the seats. I mean, you can see better on TV than anywhere in that stadium. So it was just a little bit different.
00:09:42
Speaker
The new event, the stadium obviously is stated from inside the pitch. Anyway, that, you know, they still haven't as far as I'm concerned, maximized potential revenue streams outside of the, the pitch, but from the seats on down.
00:09:55
Speaker
it is a phenomenal experience, and that stadium is full every game. So a big part of it is the game day experience, the fan experience. I mean, look, you're more comfortable and have a better view watching a game at home than you are at the stadium. It's almost begs the question, why go to the stadium? It's not like you have all the modern amenities. I mean, for God's sake, at the stadium, you still need to put a newspaper down on your seat to sit down, right? Which is crazy. You know, and you can't go and buy, you know,
00:10:25
Speaker
uh jerseys for your kids at the stadiums you can go outside and get the counterfeit ones five feet away which is crazy right but you can't go and at halftime and go get a nice panini a glass of wine because there's only one kiosk and you know Italians with lines lines don't exist it's like a funnel right it's just like you know there's no there's a line you're you're you're you're sitting there for 30 minutes halftime's only 15 by the time you get up there they ran out of water
00:10:52
Speaker
I mean, it's just, it's, it's not a pleasant experience. So that is a major part of it. The other part of it is this, they, you know, I, and people said to me all the time, you're, why are you investing in Thai football? Because you don't like money. And, you know, I would say, I would say, well, look, yeah, if you run it the way the Italians have been running it. And the thing with that, I don't understand it. You have some of the smartest business minds in Italy owning these teams. Yet when they own the teams, they act like they,
00:11:21
Speaker
are uneducated from the get-go. And it's something that is shocking to me. And I say, well, why not? Most of these guys buy these teams for social currency purposes. You want to be prime minister? Buy AC Milan. And they do it to enhance their standing in the community. And that's all fine. But it's not mutually exclusive with wanting a fiscally responsible organization. And Italy has to batten the hatches down a little bit. I mean, if you look at La Liga,
00:11:51
Speaker
Well, the middle league is the best league in the world when it comes to the business of the leagues, because what happens is you can't.
00:11:59
Speaker
lose money in La Liga. They don't let you lose money in La Liga. I mean, you have to present numbers there to the league in order to proceed in that season that are sustainable. You can't make up a sponsorship of 40 million in sponsors and only 400,000. You have to show them proof and they prevent you from losing money there. I mean, so that league is
00:12:22
Speaker
You know, when do you see a little bit getting going bankrupt? But unfortunately, in Italy, you see a lot of things going bankrupt, primarily because, you know, it's funny, I compare capitalism and socialism. And in America, obviously, the most capitalistic country in the world, to enter into the sports world there, you get vetted like you're running for president. I mean, there's no you don't just show up and you own the team and you tell the league about it later. In Italy, you know, you buy a team,
00:12:50
Speaker
It's a private deal. And then the lead flies out about it after the deal is closed without having any say as to who comes in. And, you know, the laundry list is pretty long of all the individuals who really had no business buying teams, owning teams, only to be, you know, found out to be a fraud, you know, six months later, a year later, you know, so how many teams have gone back into the lead? It's not, you know, so I think they need to be more discerning about who comes into the business. I think they do need,
00:13:18
Speaker
you know, an infrastructure
Challenges of Stadium Ownership in Italy
00:13:19
Speaker
program. And look, that's what the stadium law is for. That's what Credito Sportivo is in existence for. It helps subsidize, you know, the rebuilding of stadiums. But, you know, you're in a position where a lot of the stadiums are owned by the municipality.
00:13:32
Speaker
and you're paying rent as a team owner and the municipalities as you know don't have money to refurbish these stadiums right or put a penny into them so they don't but you as a team owner who's paying rent for these stadiums you don't want to spend millions of dollars of your own money a year or every couple years to modernize your stadium that you don't even own right so it's like this perfect storm of
00:13:56
Speaker
how script rules downhill, excuse the expression, but you want to put these antiquated stadiums that don't get better. And that is not, you know, it's a problem.
00:14:07
Speaker
Alright, so you just set up the perfect segue. So one thing we talk about on this podcast quite a bit in regards to the stadiums is the Italian bureaucracy, just how often it can take to get things done in the country. Can you just speak because you ran into this yourself at Venezia, can you just speak to how much and how bad this bureaucracy within the country
Italian Bureaucracy and Football Projects
00:14:30
Speaker
can be?
00:14:30
Speaker
Again, this is something we talk about quite a bit and I think for most people it goes in one ear and out the other because it's one of those words where it could mean a million different things and quite frankly, we probably even sound sometimes like we don't know what the heck we are talking about. So can you just discuss that very quickly because I think coming from you it would mean infinitely more.
00:14:52
Speaker
Yeah. You know, sometimes I don't know what I'm talking about either when it comes to that because there's no rules, like the rules change every week. You know, have Rockwell Commission come on your show and ask him about how he's doing with his new training center in Florence. He's like ready to choke somebody there. He doesn't understand. He's got the money. He wants to do it. Yet the, you know, the
00:15:17
Speaker
an executive in the municipality is holding up the process. And someone like that, he doesn't understand. He's like, wait, I'm doing this myself. I'm not asking for government funding. I'm doing it myself. Why can't I do this tomorrow? And you just can't. It's frustrating at times, it is. And look,
00:15:38
Speaker
We were, when I was the vice president of AS Roma, and I left there in 2014 to pursue Bologna and become president of Bologna, when I was there, we were, again, when I left there in 2014, in 2011, we were presenting stadium projects to the municipality. I remember being in meetings with the mayor where we were presenting that stadium project. That's 2011. Here we are, you know, basically 10 years later,
00:16:05
Speaker
And there's still not a nail on the ground. And by the way, I don't think there are any closer have been today than they were in 2011. So that begs the question, why? Because isn't it good for everyone? Isn't it good for the municipality? Is it good for the taxes and the revenue streams that will come from the taxes and the money spent there would be good for the city. The number of jobs created there would be enormous.
00:16:29
Speaker
um the the you know the fact that you have something that makes the city you know proud a leader in industry would be great why why because there might be a rune of a i don't know a stone from the roman era that's over there that you know i i don't know like what what what is the reason and then of course you have the the green party you know if there's a tree that has to be cut down project can't go forward
00:16:55
Speaker
Um, and then you have the bureaucracy, like, you know, if the, if 1 party supports it. Well. By nature of reaction, the other party has to oppose it and it just, it's, it's like, it's really difficult and frustrating for someone who understands that, you know, they want to be able to.
00:17:14
Speaker
do something that's good for all, including the community, and not be able to do it. So it is frustrating. And that really does have to be straightened out on a political level. I didn't run into that problem with Venezia, because I had Luigi Bernaro, Mayor Bernaro, as my partner, he promised me he would support that stadium project. And he got it approved for me. He's a different sort of mayor. He reminds me of Mayor Bloomberg, or somebody who, because he came from the business world. He wasn't born a politician. And he gets things done.
00:17:44
Speaker
Unfortunately, that's not the case all over again. Now, I want to ask you something about something that's really important to me, and I've read in the newspapers, and I want to get your thoughts on this. Basically, it's been reported that you left Venezia, you sold it in February, if I'm not mistaken, and that you're in talks to acquire Catania, a team that has gone through a lot of financial difficulties, but has a rich history.
Potential Acquisition of Catania
00:18:08
Speaker
What can you say about these negotiations? I mean, first of all, can you confirm the talks are going on? And what is the status there? Yeah, I will confirm talks are going on. I have another statement, you know, in Sicily, in Lesson Field, the other publications out there, because there was so much speculation. You know, I went down and first of all, when I left Venice after five years present there and having some great success and some great fun and winning three trophies in total there, you know, it was really
00:18:38
Speaker
an amazing experience. But, you know, I was sort of sitting back, you know, I have a whole lot of practice that keeps me very busy in the United States. But, you know, funny enough, I was reading in the newspaper every day, I was buying Zandoria, I was buying Corino, I was buying Udonasi, I was buying Sienna, I was buying like Novara, I mean, things I've never even heard of, like, you know, and then and then Katanya. And I swear to you,
00:19:05
Speaker
Other than one of those teams, one of the Syriac teams in there mentioned, I hadn't had any discussions with anyone about anything. But then what happens with Catania, you know, these facilities are very passionate people. My mother was born there. And so, you know, I started getting calls first from Salvo Arana, my lawyer, who was the lawyer for me in Bologna. He was Rocco Camisso's lawyer in Fiorentina. And, you know, he called me, he's from Catania. He said, you're buying Catania? I said, why don't you call me? I said, Salvo.
00:19:34
Speaker
because you were in the newspaper, you think that's true? It's that I have no idea what they're talking about. I, you know, honestly, I mean, it's a lot of guitar. Where are they? What are they? I didn't even know where they were.
00:19:45
Speaker
You know, and they said, no, you understand, it's a great project with great potential. Then I got a call from another individual who, who is a friend of mine and he works with one of the biggest sports agencies, player agents in the country in Europe, quite frankly, and told me the same thing. And then, you know, I got a very touching email from an employee of one of the managers there.
00:20:13
Speaker
who really poured his heart out to me and said, we would love to have you here. You could do so much of this project and be our savior. And the way he wrote it just got to me to the point where I said, I'm going to take a look. Then I got a call from Walter Zenga, my former coach, who coached there. Both of him, Jezo Mantella and Fabio Canavaro. Mantella and Zenga obviously were coaches at the time. And they said, by far and away, it was the greatest experiences in their football careers. The kind of experience was phenomenal, the quality of life, the place, the location, the training facility, obviously.
00:20:43
Speaker
Televaro brings his team from China, the train there, okay, in the abroad team from China, the train there and toward the Griffo. I said, you know what? Everyone seems to be excited about this. Let me do a little research. I started looking at it. I was blown away by what I saw. But aside from the fact that I,
00:21:00
Speaker
In Paris, I said No Catania was the ninth largest city in Italy, 1.1 million. It has the, according to different articles I've read on Wikipedia and elsewhere, between the 10th and 12th largest fan base in the country. And when you take away the six big boys, that means there's only three other teams that have a larger fan base than Catania in the country.
00:21:22
Speaker
I then started looking at Katana's history and could not believe the great players that went through there and the recent success they've had. I mean, but they were mysterious seven years ago and they finished eighth, not too long ago. They had great teams, Maxi Lopez and Papo Gomez and, you know,
00:21:42
Speaker
It's just the history is daunting. Then I did something which really I shouldn't have done because then I got sucked in hook, line and sinker. I went on YouTube and watched some of the Katanya videos. Okay. And if you looked at that fan, if that doesn't get your blood flowing and you excited that you're dead, because there's one particular video, I remember, I think was when I was at Roma, Katanya went and played at the Olympic in Roma. They had,
00:22:12
Speaker
I think it was 12 or 14,000 Katania fans in attendance in the North curve, the Austin Beach, okay? They, I mean, I've never seen, and by the way, you can't drive from Katania to Rome, right? So I mean, think about that. People flew 14,000 people in that sector. They lost either seven to nothing or seven to one, but they got wiped out, they didn't lose, okay?
00:22:39
Speaker
with each goal, and normally when your team's losing four nothing, five nothing, six nothing, seven nothing, what happens is the whistles start coming out, you know, and you know, the hissing and all that stuff. With each goal, we're almost scored. The Katanya fans got louder and louder, and louder. And if you watch that YouTube video, maybe you'll have the same reaction I did. I got goosebumps watching that. I really got goosebumps thinking, my God. So I went down there.
00:23:04
Speaker
I brought my team down. My team consists of some really great people. Of course, Davo Reyna, Dante Shabilia, who was my director general. And in Venetia for five years, one of the top commercial leases in Italy. You know, that was why I told you, I have a partner who used to be a Lehman banker, now runs some of the best hotels in the world in Shorelung Gata. You know, Giovanni Cardini, one of the best names in Italian football as an executive.
00:23:31
Speaker
I mean, we have a monster team of people who want to get involved in this project. So I went down there and take a look, and then I saw Torre de Griffo. And if you've ever seen Torre de Griffo, I mean, you can't really believe until you see it. I've spent a lot of time in Madrid. I'm very close to Jose Sanchez. My son went out, worked out there for a year. It's the pinnacle of sports teams. It really is. It's the gold standard. They have a brand new training facility.
00:24:00
Speaker
that is enormous. And I'll tell you why, it has absolutely nothing on Tori DeGryffo. It's bigger because it's Madrid, but other than that, quality-wise, there are things that Tori DeGryffo has that they don't even have in Madrid. It is by far and away the gem of that organization, aside from the fan base, which is incredible, and aside from the history. So, you know, you have an organization that in Syria, they had 28,000 in that stadium routinely.
00:24:26
Speaker
You know, and you have a property there that attracts players from all over the world because it's so incredible. The facilities are incredible. A fan base that will support you and sustain you if you give them what they want, which is respectability and you show passion. And it's in Sicily and they have the best rice bowls in the world.
00:24:47
Speaker
The aren't there anywhere else and can always so, you know, I don't know what's the most important aspect of this for me. I think it might be the can always or the, but, but it's something that to me gets my blood flow and got me very excited. Got my team very excited. We'll see what happens though. You know, there's a due diligence process. I mean, unfortunately, you guys nailed it in the beginning. They've had some financial woes.
00:25:09
Speaker
And they've been in some substantial, they're in substantial debt, I mean about 50 plus million euros in debt now. A good portion of that debt is towards the GRIFO, which is good debt. It's with credit bills for EVO and it's debt that is sustainable. But then there's other debt like tax debts and supplier debts and things of that nature that have to really be restructured before anyone that's fiscally prudent would come into it.
00:25:34
Speaker
If hypothetically you are successful in acquiring a katanya because obviously it's not the done deal as we know but you sound excited which makes me excited as a katanya fan but what is a realistic time frame for you if hypothetically you were successful to return to
Vision for Catania's Future in Serie A
00:25:49
Speaker
the city up?
00:25:49
Speaker
Listen, listen, we'd be if we come in and my group comes in, we have only one goal in mind to be in Syria. This can time is not a team from the third division. It's not a team for Syria, but you can times in Syria team in a Syria city with a Syria history. It's going to be warps. We look in, in, in, you know, I, I, I was told, I learned later, but I'm proud to say I became the first president in the history of Italian football to win three promotions in a row, 14, 15 with Bologna, 15, 16, but that's just 16, 17 with that's just three in a row.
00:26:19
Speaker
Um, you know, that's not an easy task with my goal would be to put 2 more on top of that in a hurry. Um, you know, we want to get this team in Syria. That's where this becomes a real sustainable business model with the team in Syria with a refurbishing of the.
00:26:36
Speaker
Of the, you know, the grateful facility to even make it more, you know, there's a big public facility there as well. They have this incredible gym spot world class pool and they have 3500 season members a year. You know, there's ways to really. Increase the revenue for the cultural other than just the standard stuff.
00:26:58
Speaker
Um, but the goal would be to get it right up there in a hurry, because that's where the tiny belongs. It doesn't belong in the second division or the third division, of course. But, you know, it's not going to be easy. This year is a real tough year for that. Um, you know, you have, uh, you have. Okay, you have obviously Palermo, you have Alino.
00:27:14
Speaker
but you also have Bari, okay? And, you know, the Lawrence is spending just a little bit more than everyone else in the third division there to make sure his team goes up, much like, you know, Berlusconi and Renzo Rossi did last year. So, but, you know, we're not going to be in for the start of the season. I mean, I'm hopeful that if this is a successful deal, and we're working, by the way, with CG, the current ownership group that just came in a month ago, they were basically a syndicate of local businessmen who just pooled together some money.
00:27:42
Speaker
To the safest team, which was admirable, but, you know, by, by, you know, they want us in.
00:27:49
Speaker
They want us to come in and I want to keep them in because I think, you know, it's important to have a local ownership presence. But we'll see what happens. Look, it's the only thing, I will be honest with you, it is the only thing I'm focused on. I want nothing more than that because I believe in that city. And when I went down there, I got to tell you, the thing that really got to me was the fan reaction, the, you know, they came up to me as if we had already saved the team when we were in Syria.
00:28:17
Speaker
The level of appreciation that was pretty substantial and it was very touching to me.
00:28:22
Speaker
And, you know, as any place I've been present in Bologna in Venezia when I was VP of Roma, you know, my move, my sort of model is different than the others, like different than a Pilata model where you show up once, twice a year, you know, whatever. I mean, I live the community.
Community Engagement in Football
00:28:40
Speaker
I go into that community because to me, you have to understand that you can be the paper owner of a team, but the team is owned by the community. You're the custodian. And if you understand that and you think like that,
00:28:52
Speaker
then you understand the importance of really bridging the gap between the team and the community and being part of that community and letting them know you care, you respect them, you give back. I think that's why I've been successful and I've been sort of supporting the projects and bringing enthusiasm and energy to every project that I've been in.
00:29:14
Speaker
Myself and the other Roma supporters, we need no convincing of how important it is to have the president there. So incredibly refreshing to hear. Before we let you go though, we just have a few quick fire questions for you.
Quickfire Football Legends Q&A
00:29:26
Speaker
So the first one, Bajo Totti del Piero. Totti. Ah, perfect answer. All right. Messi or Cristiano Ronaldo.
00:29:36
Speaker
Listen, listen, I gotta be honest with you. I've done a three six on that. It always used to be messy for me. For me, Ronaldo's the guy because you know what?
00:29:46
Speaker
He wins, he wins, and he wins. I mean, the best thing he ever did was when, I can't think it was, they were playing athletic go when the Champions League, and he did that thing, one, two, three, four, five with his fingers. I mean, the guy wins. And the guy wins, and I'll tell you what, as a Madrid fan, and I am a Madrid fan because of my relationship with that team, they've helped me out immeasurably when I was with Venezia.
00:30:12
Speaker
They're like, you know, my big brothers in a lot of way. Um, and I spent a lot of time there. My son spent the year there. Um, I love them. And, and when, when Ronaldo left that team, it was just, you saw what happened with a different team. So, you know, for all the pretty boy stuff and all that, you know, it's not a complete player. You know what? He's, he's, he's a God. I mean, he is, he is, I'll take Ronaldo any, any day. Um,
00:30:40
Speaker
to start my team. And, you know, as great as Messi is, and I know there are people out there who think I'm crazy and Messi is maybe the greatest player of all time, I'll take Ronaldo's. To me, it's all about the rings and the cups. And as far as I'm concerned, no one's better than Ronaldo. Maradona Opele, because you talk about the greatest of all time, I have to ask you that.
00:31:00
Speaker
And curveball here John told me that you guys worked out of the gym before and the you jib bench press each each other Who won that competition? And you can send one of John I mean what happened was John sat on my bar as I was
00:31:22
Speaker
so it's not it's plus john's very strong but doesn't not in the same room it's like sort of rinaldo it's like it's like rinaldo and iguanine oh i'll never let that one down jesus all right well joe you've been far too fine with your time now you guys are great i really appreciate your podcast i gotta tell you my friend sal bono is a big fan of yours and
00:31:42
Speaker
And when he heard I was coming on this thing, he hadn't spoken to me in like three months. He was like, so excited. We're mending relationships here. This is great. Yeah. Yep. You guys are. Yeah. So great to be on. And I'm here anytime you guys need me. And if anything happens, affirmably down in Sicily.
00:32:01
Speaker
I'll come back and we can talk about that a little bit more. Can't wait. Can't wait. We're definitely bringing you on again. Joe again. Thank you so much. Everyone. Thank you for listening again. If you want to get access to all the episodes patreon.com slash T I F P. So thank you again for listening to this episode. We will catch you on Monday for the review episode. So until then, bye bye.