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MILAN – Man, captain, Inter legend. Giacinto Facchetti, a giant of Nerazzurri history. Today is his birthday: he would have turned 72. FC Internazionale remembers Giacinto as a paragon of virtue, someone all Interisiti should aspire to live up to. Happy birthday, Giacinto.
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MILAN – FC Internazionale Milano President Erick Thohir announced today that he has appointed seasoned sports and entertainment executive Michael Bolingbroke as the new Chief Executive Officer of the Club. The 48 year old Bolingbroke will join Inter in August after having completed his stint as Chief Operating Officer for the English Premier League side Manchester United.
“I am very excited to bring a leader of Michael’s expertise and stature to our club,” said Inter President Thohir. “Michael has my complete faith, trust and confidence. He is the perfect person to execute the vision shared by the Moratti family and myself of Inter as a truly global brand. I look forward to working with him as we build a foundation for future success.”
Bolingbroke brings his extensive leadership qualities to the organization. His focus will include implementing best practices in the industry, increasing the reach and depth of penetration of the Inter brand globally, and improving engagement with fans. Bolingbroke joins the strong management team at Inter that includes Managing Director Marco Fassone, Vice President Angelomario Moratti and Vice President Javier Zanetti, together with Michael Williamson, Piero Ausilio and Giorgio Ricci.
“I’m absolutely delighted to be offered this opportunity”, said Bolingbroke. “Inter is one of the strongest brands in football with a heritage to match. I can’t wait to get started and look forward to working alongside the management team in place.”
At Manchester United, Bolingbroke was responsible for ticketing, hospitality, match and non-matchday operations, club secretarial functions, property management and corporate services including finance, human resources, legal and information technology. He was also a board member of MUTV, the club’s TV channel, and a trustee on the Board of the Club’s Pension Fund. In addition, Bolingbroke was on the Board of Manchester United Limited’s joint venture partnership with Nike. He was also Chairman of the Club’s charitable Foundation.
“I’m excited to have someone with the knowledge and experience of Michael joining the Inter team”, said Managing Director Marco Fassone. “I look forward to working closely with him as we grow Inter together.”
Prior to joining Manchester United, Bolingbroke was the Senior Vice President, Shows at Cirque du Soleil, where he worked from 2001 to 2007 managing the strategy, profitability and operations of the Company’s global business comprising fixed and touring shows. Prior to joining Cirque du Soleil, Mr. Bolingbroke was the Senior Vice President, Operations at the Jim Henson Company, where he worked from 1992 to 2001.
Bolingbroke was awarded a degree in Economics from Reading University in 1987 and qualified as a Chartered Accountant in 1990 with PriceWaterhouseCoopers. He also gained an MBA from the London Business School in 2001, which was awarded with Distinction.
Bolingbroke has lived and worked in the UK, the Netherlands, the U.S. and Canada and is married with two children.
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PINZOLO – Three and a half years, 114 competitive appearances and now one (friendly) as captain. Andrea Ranocchia’s Nerazzurrri career reached a new level when he took to the field against Trentino Team wearing the armband he inherited from Javier Zanetti. And now you have the chance to ask him about being Inter’s skipper, or anything else you’re curious to know!
Tonight Ranocchia will answer questions sent in by the fans using the hashtag #askRanocchia. The event will take place in Pinzolo’s Piazza Carera from 21:15. It will all be filmed by Inter Channel and streamed live on inter.it.
#askRanocchia is the first meeting between Interisti and our new captain, so what are you waiting for? Start sending in those questions!
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PINZOLO – Andrea Ranocchia, in his first match of the season as the new Nerazzurri captain, responded to questions from journalists in the mixed zone of the Stadio La Pineta after Inter v Trentino Team.
Andrea, does the shirt weigh on you more when you wear the captain’s armband?
“No, but we can say it brings more responsibility. I’m ready and I’m glad the coach and club have chosen me for the role. I want to continue with what Pupi has done. I’ll honour the shirt as I’ve always done, and I hope we can reach our objectives.”
From a defensive standpoint, does a year with Mazzarri represent a working foundation you can restart from?
“Absolutely. The coach is one of the best in Italy and in Europe to field a three-man defence. We’ve learned a lot. Of course there are things we still need to sort out. We’ve started strongly this season. Now we’re waiting for the other internationals to arrive, but the foundation is in place and we’re working hard.”
Have you ever thought of how your career might have changed had you accepted when Antonio Conte was ‘courting’ you?
“I never gave it any consideration. I’m fully committed to this project. I’ve always thought I’d stay here and win wearing this shirt because it’s one thing I really miss.”
Were you surprised when he resigned?
“I think everyone was a bit surprised by it. The team had already assembled for pre-season. He must have had his reasons, but we have to think about ourselves. This is something that should push us to do better.”
How have the new players Dodo and M’Vila looked to you?
“M’Vila has only just arrived. He has to adjust to the workload. He looks to be integrating well with all his new team-mates. Dodo is a good lad. He’s putting in maximum effort and I believe he can be very useful to the entire team.”
You’ve inherited Marco Materazzi’s number 23 and the captain’s armband from Javier Zanetti. Do you think you were predestined to wear these colours?
“We could say I took from the best. When Marco retired he asked me if I would like to wear his number, and I told him I would. I don’t know if I’m predestined for anything. I’ve always believed in these colours. I want to raise a few trophies seeing how the coach and club have decided to go with me as team captain.”
Will you customise the armband as Zanetti did? And could Juan Jesus be your vice-captain?
“I honestly haven’t considered customising it. We’ll see. It’s not so much about what the armband looks like, but rather the attitude and responsibility it requires to wear it. Juan also feels strongly for these colours. I believe he’ll become one of the best defenders in the world. He’ll also be an important part of his national team.”
This afternoon you began in the middle, and then you moved out to the right. Which position do you prefer to play in? And as far as the workload, I wanted to know if you find this pre-season to be heavier than the one last year.
“I’m comfortable in either position. In the final ten matches from last season I played a bit in the centre and a bit on the right, and I always did well. If I feel well physically I manage to play well anywhere. As for the workload, we’ve begun a bit earlier this time compared to previous years so we’ve lightened it a bit. That’s also in order to be in good shape for the summer tours. And we also have a big event coming up on 21 August.”
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