Italian news outlet Corriere Della Sera reported recently that Princess Nourah bint Saad has successfully acquired the Umbrian football club Spoleto. This makes her the first Saudi woman to officially become president of a sports club.
Princess Nourah chose the team after considering several aspects. “Spoleto is a small, amateur football organization where it is possible to work with the aim of growing and for promotion. But we cannot fail to consider the value and beauty of the city of Spoleto, which is famous throughout the world.”
Spoleto is a member of Serie D of the Italian non-professional football association, Lega Nazionale Dilettanti. The association represents more than 12,000 football players and 400 football teams across Italy and is considered the fourth-ranked league in the country. Under the princess’ presidency, the Spoleto aims to ascend to Serie C in the near future, and higher up the order in the long term.
This purchase marks the Saudi royal family’s second venture into sports club ownership. Prince Abdullah bin Musa’ad co-owns English Premier League football club Sheffield United.
