Kelly Ripa and Mark Consuelos become co-owners of Italian soccer team ASD Campobasso
Longtime morning talk show host, Kelly Ripa and her husband, actor Mark Consuelos, have purchased a stake in ASD Campobasso 1919, a small soccer club in the fifth tier of Italian football. The pair are thrilled to have joined the ownership group as minority investors in the small soccer club.
Matt Rizzetta, the chairman of North Sixth, made the announcement on Instagram on Thursday, November 10. His caption read, "Wrexham has nothing on this underdog story! So proud to welcome @kellyripa & @instasuelos into the family as partners in our football journey. We bought @campobasso1919 because it was the quintessential underdog story, and there is no better underdog story in Hollywood over the past several decades than Kelly & Mark. Grateful for your support and belief in our vision and opening your hearts to these wonderful fans who deserve to be put on the map in a big way! "Insieme" the sky is the limit!"
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At the end of the 2020–21 season, Campobasso, known as "Lupi," or "Wolves" in Italian, was promoted to Serie C. However, the Italian Football Federation intervened and prohibited the team from taking part in Serie C play owing to "administrative irregularities." As a result, Campobasso was compelled to unite with another team and re-enter the Italian football system's fifth division. The club was unsure whether or not they would be able to compete in the 2022–23 season until they were purchased by the North Sixth Group, a US holding company, earlier this year.
The Hollywood couple is hoping that their investment would help the Italian team to restore its winning ways. "The Campobasso project is the quintessential underdog story," Consuelos told Sportico. "When I heard the story about these fans being at risk of losing the sport they love, Kelly and I wanted to get involved and be part of the solution. This is a story of redemption, rebirth and hope that will be playing out on the football pitches of Italy, and we are truly proud to play a role as co-owners."
Despite his enthusiasm, Consuelos admitted that he previously did not know anything about the club. "I literally had to Google it on the map to find out where it is," said Consuelos. The actor was approached by the investment group’s chairman Matt Rizetta before the start of the season.