Napoli v Roma puts Aurelio De Laurentiis and Dan Friedkin face to face, two club owners linked by a love of film and the idea of the club as a family legacy, but very different in their finances and their approach to running a football club. The comparison, written by Marco Iaria in La Gazzetta dello Sport, shows that the pair are not economically comparable. De Laurentiis built his business around cinema before turning to football, while the Texan made most of his fortune elsewhere.
Friedkin's main source of wealth is Gulf States Toyota, the exclusive distributor in five American states, which recorded sales of $14.5 billion in 2025. It is one of the most profitable independent Toyota distributors in the world. Those different financial bases are reflected in how the two clubs are run. De Laurentiis imposed self-sufficiency on Napoli from the start. He took over the club in 2004 from the bankruptcy receivership using a €32 million credit line from UniCredit, which the club repaid within three years.
Between summer 2020 and December 2025, Friedkin invested €1,060 million in Roma: €199 million to acquire the majority stake from Pallotta, €37 million to buy the remaining shares on the stock market, and €824 million to fund the club's running costs. The accounts have always been in deficit, although the gap has been steadily shrinking. Looking ahead, the new Pietralata stadium has received final authorisation, with its opening scheduled for 2029. De Laurentiis, by contrast, is still behind schedule on his own stadium plans.
Testo Originale / Source Text
“C'è un filo conduttore, il cinema, e c'è l'idea del club come patrimonio di famiglia, ma ci sono anche tante differenze. Napoli-Roma mette di fronte Aurelio De Laurentiis e Dan Friedkin. Due figure non paragonabili economicamente, perché se ADL ha legato il suo business fondamentalmente al cinema…”
Read the full article in Italian at Forza Roma.