Billionaire titan equally at home in the boardroom and the soccer field

Did you know that an Italian-American billionaire owns both a U.S. cable company and an Italian soccer team?

Rocco Commisso was born Nov. 25, 1949, in Calabria, Italy. He moved to the United States when he was 12 years old. He attended Mount Saint Michael Academy in the Bronx. He earned a full scholarship to Columbia University as a major in industrial engineering and later acquired his MBA in 1975. During his tenure at the business school, he was elected president of the student body and was the recipient of the prestigious Business School Service Award. Beyond his academic prowess he also excelled as a soccer player at Columbia University which led to a tryout for the U.S. Soccer team in 1972.

His career began in finance working at Chase Manhattan Bank and Royal Bank of Canada. His role at the Royal Bank of Canada led the bank’s U.S. lending activities to companies in the media and communications field. He served as executive vice president for 10 years along with being promoted to chief financial officer and director of Cablevision Industries Corp. Cablevision grew from the 25^th largest cable company to the eighth-largest cable company in the United States during his tenure.

In 1995 he created the Mediacom cable company to offer services to the rural communities. Mediacom is the 5^th largest cable provider in the United States. Coverage map includes over 20 states mostly centered in the Midwest and Southwest. Mediacom specializes in midsized cities : Columbus, Ohio, Duluth, Minn., and Pensacola, Fla. In 2011 he took the company private in a $600 million deal.

In 2017 he continued his lifetime soccer passion and bought the New York Cosmos. He furthered his appassionato in 2019 with the acquisition of the Serie “A” team based in Firenze (ACF Fiorentina). He purchased “La Viola” at the cost of $160 million. His promise to build a world-class soccer facility was achieved in 2023 with the opening of Viola Park a highly developed training facility. It covers over 60 acres including several gyms, 12 regular pitches, medical center, wellness center and two stadiums with a capacity of 3,000. Viola Park is considered to be the largest and preeminent sports facility in Italy.

He has received accolades from National Italian American Foundation for his lifetime achievements and followed this with his alma mater recognition. Columbia University awarded him as one of the top business alumni along with Warren Buffet (CEO of Berkshire Hathaway) and Robert Kraft (owner of the New England Patriots). Furthermore, he was recognized for his lifetime contributions with the renaming of the Columbia Soccer Stadium to the Rocco B. Commisso Soccer Stadium. Lastly, in 2015 in recognition for his work in advancing America’s ethnic heritage culture and traditions he was bestowed with the 2015 Ellis Island Medal of Honor.

Adesso lo sa.