Top facts about Massimo Ferrero, little viper

Massimo Ferrero (born 5 August 1951 in Rome) is an Italian film producer, entrepreneur, and sports management who now served as the president of Sampdoria from 2014 until 2021.

Massimo Ferrero’s age

is 70.

Since entering the world of football by taking over

, Massimo Ferrero has suddenly become a well-known and recognizable public figure throughout the country.

With its marked Roman accent and a frank and direct irony, “Er Viperetta”, as it is known in the capital, can be almost defined as an icon, so much so that it was also called as a guest on the stage of the Sanremo Festival. He also recently took part with a cameo in the Carlo Verdone series on Prime Video.

The patron of Sampdoria, but a change of ownership could be close, but there are also legal vicissitudes: on 6 December 2021 he was arrested with bankruptcy, while previously he had suffered a seizure of assets (now revoked by the Review) by the Rome Public Prosecutor's Office.

In between there is also a request for indictment for the charges of embezzlement, self-laundering, use of false invoices and use of money, goods or utilities of illicit origin.

According to the indictment, Ferrero diverted more than 1 million euros from the Sampdoria's coffers following the sale of midfielder Pedro Obiang, all to pay past debts and finance a film.

Born in Rome, Testaccio district, on 5 August 1951, Massimo Ferrero has been attracted to the world of cinema and entertainment since he was a child. The son of a bus driver and a street vendor, his paternal grandmother was a showgirl at the Ambra Jovinelli Theater.

“Life in the Testaccio neighborhood was no joke - declared Ferrero years later - I worked as a butcher, baker, secretary, assistant secretary, organizer, executive producer. I was working. I have always done this by leaving other salons, important friends, godparents and bosses."

Top facts about Massimo Ferrero:

Massimo Ferrero bought Sampdoria in 2014 and is one of the most renowned figures in Italian soccer.

In 2014 he attacked Inter's Indonesian owner Erick Thohir as "that Filipino" and the following year claimed that the owner of Palermo's soccer team had threatened to kill him.

Massimo Ferrero early life

Ferrero was born in Rome's famed Testaccio area. The paternal grandmother was an Ambra Jovinelli soubrette who performed with Macario. Regarding

Massimo Ferrero’s parents

, his father and his brother were bus drivers, and his mother ran a street kiosk in the market in Piazza Vittorio all' Esquilino.

Speaking about

Massimo Ferrero’s childhood

, it should be mentioned that as a child, he often traveled to Cinecittà in secret with Giuliano Gemma. He made his first appearance here in 1958. Meanwhile, he spent six months in juvenile jail.

Massimo Ferrero personal life

A notable fact about Massimo Ferrero is that he is married to Laura Sini, the heiress of the I Buonatavola Sini dairy firm, which is based in Nepi, a town in the province of Viterbo, and manufactures and sells its goods to the United States of America.

He and her wife have six dairies together and have a daughter, Emma, from their marriage. They adopted two more children, Vanessa (head of the Ellemme Group, general organizer of films such as The Rhythm of Life, and former member of the Board of Sampdoria) and Michela, who is the result of a prior marriage, and Manuela Ramunni, who is the result of a second relationship.

Massimo Ferrero professional career

An important fact about Massimo Ferrero is that he started his career in show business at the age of eighteen and progressed through a lengthy process, from factotum to driver, until he occupied the post of production manager (from 1974 to 1983) in films such as A mezzanotte va la ronda del piacere and others.

In 1983, he earned the title of general organizer initially and executive producer afterwards (from 1983 to 1998) in films such as Ultrà by Ricky Tognazzi and others, in which he also appeared in a short cameo. Another appearance in the 1995 film was Waiters, in which he portrays Sem, a greyhound ticket agent.

Ferrero is known as Er Viperetta; according to his version, this moniker does not have a bad meaning and was given to him by Monica Vitti after protecting the actress from an assailant.

Ferrero, on the other hand, eventually refuted this account, and in his autobiographical book, he ultimately said that the first person to give him this moniker was a homosexual costume designer.

On July 9, 2016, he was named "Character of the Year" by the "Grand Prix Corallo city of Alghero." On 11 January 2018, news reports named him as a candidate on the "We with Italy" list, a center-right party managed by Raffaele Fitto and Lorenzo Cesa.

Financed by Sini, he launched the first film produced by an independent, Witnesses of Love, in 1998 with Blu Cinematografica, which did not pay off the investment.

An important

fact about Massimo Ferrero

is that he lost a billion lire with Libero Burro and La Carbonara, roughly 800 million with The Sweet Noise of Life, one billion and 600 million with Il tempo dell'amore, and eventually three million Euros with Io no in 2003, for which he was obliged to sell a property. Ricky Tognazzi, Simona Izzo, Francesco Vendittian, and Claudia Gerini are among the company's partners.

He then purchased 60 theatres from Cinecittà Luce and the court for € 59 million (from an earlier appraisal of € 100 million) via Farvem Real Estate.

Injunctions for payment, tax bills, precepts, and other reasons are promptly brought against the Farvem. The major asset is a residential complex in via Rutilio in the Cinecittà neighborhood, which is valued at € 40 million.

It maintains around 30 theaters in Rome's downtown, including the ancient Teatro Adriano, via the Ferrero Cinemas Group (which is part of the Mediaport Cinema family group bought by the State in 2008 for $26.5 million).

At 2006, he purchased the rights to the film Bye Bye Berlusconi! by Jan Henrik Stahlberg, which was shown in the Panorama Speciale section of the 2006 Berlin Film Festival, but it was never released.

Partly to avoid upsetting Silvio Berlusconi and maybe because he couldn't figure out who was disseminating it. Since 2009, he has also been a cinema distributor via Ellemme Group, which is managed by the British businesses Elmhold Limited and Artgold Limited, and for which the Rai board of directors has requested explanation due to the opacity of the structure.

Pietro Folena, a former PRC deputy, is one of the councilors. In the same year, he purchased the charter airline Livingston Energy Flight via FG Holding, which works with tour operators like as I Viaggi del Ventaglio.

In 2010, the Civil Aviation Authority terminated the airline's flying license, and soon after, the Court of Busto Arsizio ruled the carrier insolvent, triggering the extraordinary administration process.

Massimo Ferrero as Sampdoria's president

"I was born with a Sampdoria heart and a yellow and red head." (In answer to Valerio Staffelli's query on his choice between

and Sampdoria).

On June 12, 2014, he took over Sampdoria free of charge from Edoardo Garrone, incurring around € 15 million in indebtedness. Ferrero, on the other hand, never concealed his feelings for Rome, so much so that he had previously attempted to purchase it as well as Salerno.

As proof of their national acclaim, the comedian Maurizio Crozza, a Sampdoria supporter, started to suggest their impersonation during the 2014/2015 season of Crozza in Wonderland.

On February 12, 2015, he appeared as a guest during the third evening of the Sanremo Festival, which was directed by Carlo Conti, and on February 20, March 20, April 10, and April 17, he appeared at the Grand Hotel Chiambretti.

In May, after investigating lower league clubs, he announced interest in purchasing another football team, Lecce, which competes in the Lega Pro competition.

At the same time, Massimo Ferrero's book Massimo Ferrero - Una vita al massimo (and that is the least I can say) is published, co-written with Alessandro Alciato.

An important fact about Massimo Ferrero is that he owns Sampdoria through Sport Spettacolo Holding Srl, a financial company based in Rome with a share capital of € 950,000, a net equity of € 6.7 million, and is 100 percent controlled by Holding Max Srl (founded on June 27, 2014 with a share capital of € 1,000, raised to € 50,000 on May 6, 2015), which is 80 percent owned by his daughter Vanessa and 20 percent owned by his nephew Giorgio.

Former President Garrone, who still owns 1% of the firm, seems to have paid € 36.5 million in capital account, with a portion of it earmarked for the cancellation of the debt, which was $24.6 million at the end of 2014.

The Board of Directorsdella Sampdoria adopted a recovery plan in February 2015 that was effective through 2017-2018 and planned for a significant breakeven beginning with the next sports season and profits for the following ones.

A notable

fact about Massimo Ferrero

is that he looked to have invested merely three million euros out of his own pocket in Sampdoria in the form of a loan in June of the same year.

In addition to the 36.5 million, Garrone put another 28.9 million into Sport Spettacolo Holding's capital account, for a total of 65.4 million. Ferrero has also placed its film firms Eleven Finance, V Production, and Do & Go in this ownership.

In July, Ferrero entered into an arrangement with entrepreneur Flavio Briatore to expand the Sampdoria brand globally. In October, the Actual comedy group released a spoof film depicting Ferrero's campaign for mayor of Rome, in which he appeared.

The FIGC made him renounce the president of Sampdoria on 5 April 2017, after the ultimate sentence of one year and ten months for the Livingston accident.

An important fact about Massimo Ferrero is that he returned to the corporation as president on December 19, the same year, since the forfeiture was no longer relevant.

With the renewal of the Board of Directors on December 28, 2018, Ferrero, who was also strong in both player and real estate investments (the Academy of Bogliasco) and had a positive balance of nearly 10 million euros, was still chosen as president, as his daughter Vanessa and her nephew Giorgio left the scene.

The years after Sampdoria's presidency are distinguished by a progressive deterioration in ties with a portion of the fans. The refusal to sell the firm to a consortium headed by Sampdoria Gianluca Vialli further added to the supporters' intolerance, which occasionally resulted in banners of protest against the president.

With the continuance of the Sampdoria experience, the parties' relationships looked to be deteriorating. In the weeks after the completion of the season, the atmosphere among supporters got more intense.

The perplexing business position was influential, as was the effort by certain Gradinata Sud organizations to blanket Genoa with anti-President posters, with the clear phrase “Ferrero get away “.

An important

fact about Massimo Ferrero

is that he resigned as club president on December 6, 2021, after his arrest for business crimes and false bankruptcy.

Massimo Ferrero in custody

A notable fact about Massimo Ferrero is that he was arrested on Monday for financial offences that had nothing to do with Sampdoria. According to Corriere della Sera, the investigation began in 2010 and determined that the chairman arranged a succession of firms and bogus enterprises to pocket money from his debtors and escape taxes.

Ferrero stood resigned as president of Sampdoria quite shortly. The squad is presently being managed by COO Alberto Bosco, who has comforted both the personnel and the players. A trust had previously been established to protect the company from future legal issues.

Ferrero is accused of evading taxes of approximately €6 million, among other things. He rationalized the missing data in 2014 by claiming that a vehicle containing them inside had been stolen. Investigators claim he engaged in fake accounting and purposefully allowed certain businesses to go bankrupt in order to avoid paying his obligations.

His daughter Vanessa and nephew Giorgio, as well as five other administrators, are being investigated. The previous chairman's primary occupation is in the film business.

"Sampdoria has nothing to do with this problem," his lawyer Giuseppina Tenga said. Because he couldn't wield a club from jail, he had to quit. His private enterprises, including his movie firm, are under investigation. In 2017, the investigators are investigating into a few bankruptcies.

I don't think the legislation is bad, but it might have been handled better. Ferrero was in Milan at the time because he was negotiating Dejan Stankovic's employment."

In 2014, the flamboyant billionaire took acquired the squad for free from Edoardo Garrone, by promising to pay €15 million in arrears. His connection with the audience gradually deteriorated. Gianluca Vialli had put together a group to acquire Sampdoria in 2020, but Ferrero rejected the offer. According to Ansa, the team will most likely be sold following the arrest.

"If I wanted to run, I could have done it when we were shooting Pekin Express," Ferrero told the reporters today. They didn't give me house arrests because they didn't think it would be enough.

But how could I get away if the cops had been tailing me for some time? I was enraged yesterday because they wouldn't let me be there when they searched my Rome house. I'm in good health, and I just experienced a nosebleed due to excessive blood pressure."

"As Ferrero frequently says, a poor circumstance may produce a fantastic scenario," board member Gianluca Vidal told Il Secolo XIX on the club's future. I've had queries from a few related business owners with whom I'm already acquainted.”

“This may hasten the procedure. As far as I'm aware, none of the people who have shown an interest have any ties to Vialli. He is a serious individual who may contact you later.

We're seeking for a well-heeled, trustworthy, and reputable investment. Meanwhile, the trust will continue to fulfill its mission of navigating this difficult position and funding day-to-day activities."

Massimo Ferrero defends himself from the San Vittore jail in Milan, where he was arrested on Monday on allegations of corporate crimes and fake bankruptcy for actions that do not include Sampdoria but do involve the bankruptcy of some of the club's Calabrian subsidiaries. According to "The Weather," he said the following.

"I could easily lose track of myself while filming the Beijing Express episodes if I wanted to." "I'm OK, now that I'm in my cell, I'm fine." On Monday, I became enraged with the bankers for refusing to allow me to be relocated to my Rome home to monitor the search, and I bled profusely from my nose, causing my blood pressure to rise.

Giuseppina Tenga's objective is to get Ferrero out of San Vittore as quickly as possible, or at least to place him under house arrest, like his daughter Vanessa and nephew Giorgio, who are also being probed by the Public Prosecutor's Office of Paola.

Massimo Ferrero resignation

Massimo Ferrero has resigned as president of Sampdoria after his arrest and incarceration as part of an inquiry into business crimes and bankruptcy.

Ferrero was arrested and transferred to the San Vittore prison in Milan on Monday, while five other persons, including his daughter and grandson, were placed under house arrest.

The public prosecutor of Paola, in the southern Italian province of Calabria, is investigating nine persons in connection with the circumstances that led to the failure of four of Ferrero's prior business enterprises.

The Serie A team is not being investigated, and Ferrero has stepped down from his position with immediate effect, according to a statement made by the club.

"It was with great surprise that we learnt today of Massimo Ferrero's pre-trial detention order being carried out," the statement stated.

"It was a request for bankruptcy from the public prosecutor's office in Paola, relating to actions that occurred many years ago. The reason for the precautionary measures is yet unknown.

"In any case, it should be noted that these occurrences have nothing to do with Sampdoria's administration and ownership, as well as Ferrero's film-related activities.

"However, Ferrero plans to formally resign from the corporate offices of which he has been the owner until now, in order to better defend the interests of the other operations in which it operates."

In June 2014, the 70-year-old Rome-based billionaire secured a buyout of the Serie A club for roughly €15 million (£12.8 million), which included the team's debt.

Sampdoria established themselves as regulars in Serie A during his seven and a half years in charge, qualifying for the Europa League qualifying stages in 2015.

Ferrero has been close to selling the club in recent months, most recently in August to a group headed by club legend Gianluca Vialli, and this week reiterated his openness to sell if a suitable buyer emerges.

"I did my best and I'm still doing my best," he told Italian newspaper La Repubblica. "If someone is capable of giving Sampdoria more light than I am, they may step forward; I'm willing to listen and transfer the torch."

After a 3-1 defeat to Lazio on Sunday, Sampdoria is in the midst of a difficult period after Claudio Ranieri's departure in the summer. They are now 15th in Serie A.

Ferrero resigned as president of Sampdoria, according to a statement was made by the club after his resignation, "It was with great surprise that we learnt today of Massimo Ferrero's pre-trial detention order being carried out," the statement stated.

"It was a request for bankruptcy from the Republic of Paola's Public Prosecutor's Office relating to actions that occurred many years ago." The reason for the precautionary measures is yet unknown.

"These occurrences are completely unrelated to the Sampdoria's administration and ownership, as well as Ferrero's Roman activity in the film industry.

"However, Ferrero plans to formalize the immediate retirement from social roles in order to defend the interests of the various activities in which he engages, particularly to prevent any speculation surrounding Sampdoria and the world of football."

"At the same time, he puts himself at the entire disposal of the investigators, who will be contacted by his attorneys, Luca Ponti and Giuseppina Tenga, to explain his position and prevent additional biases against other realities, such as Sampdoria, which would be injured for no cause."

Massimo Ferrero other allegations

On June 12, 2014 (the same day Massimo Ferrero purchased Sampdoria), the judge of the preliminary hearing definitively sentenced Massimo Ferrero to one year and ten months in prison for the crime of fraudulent bankruptcy, in addition to the payment of a portion of the debts due to the bankruptcy of the airline Livingston Energy Flight.

On March 6, 2015, the Municipality of Rome removed the old Troisi Cinema in Trastevere since, according to the Department of Heritage, Ferrero would not be the owner of the hall, even if Ferrero claims to have purchased it from the Court following Vittorio Cecchi Gori's failure.

During the same time era, Ferrero sued writer Mario Giordano for harming his image by comparing him for the Livingston scandal to the famous people under investigation or condemned on the Italian stage in his book Pescecani.

In May, PM Di Maio was challenged by the Rome Public Prosecutor's Office for failing to pay VAT of €200,000 owed to Blu Cinematografica dating back to 2009.

On February 4, 2016, the Court of Busto Arsizio (VA) sentenced him to one year and ten months in prison for misappropriation of funds in the Livingston crack case; the conviction occurred after the plea bargain and includes the assignment to social services as well as 850,000 euros in compensation to the Ministry of Economic Development.

On September 21, the same year, he was probed for failing to meet his family aid duties. In July 2017, he was charged with embezzlement and money laundering by the Rome Public Prosecutor's Office, alleging that he exploited Sampdoria's current accounts for personal reasons and to refill the coffers of entertainment firms owned by him and Livingston.

In October 2020, he announced, in response to the coronavirus pandemic of 2019-2020, that "we do not die of Coronavirus, we respect the sick people but we do not highlight," expecting that the government would allow for further stadium openings in Italy.

Some quick facts about Massimo Ferrero:

Already as a child, together with the actor Giuliano Gemma, he went secretly to Cinerite, so much so that he made his first appearance in a film in 1958 when he was only seven years old.

Then, at the age of fourteen, he ended up for six months in the juvenile prison of Porta Portese, as he declared, even from behind bars he experiences his love for acting.

Released from prison, he navigated many jobs never forgetting his great passion: cinema. In addition to various cameos (the one in Ricky Tognazzi's film Ultrà is very popular), he specialized in the role of production director first and then executive producer.

In those years they also gave him the nickname "Er Viperetta", given by a gay costume designer beaten down by the Sampdoria patron, with Massimo Ferrero who in 1995 also flies to Cuba to meet Fidel Castro designing the State Cinema for him.

He said he got used to the nickname Er Viperetta and almost cuddles it as a term of endearment, “I don’t hurt a fly.” He claimed that the nickname was an affection invented by Monica Vitti, but few believed him. “The vipers kill, you only do good and you are nice and picturesque”, his friend, Sylvester Stallone always told him.

After the marriage with the heiress Laura Sini of the homonymous dairy company (with her he had a daughter, Emma, while from the following relationship with Manuela Ramunni Rocco Contento and Oscar were born, and two other children were previously adopted), financed from what is now his ex-wife he founded the film production house Blu Cinematrografica.

His films, however, also recorded heavy liabilities, while in the following years with the creation of the Massimo Ferrero Cinemas circuit he took over several cinemas, many of which by Vittorio Cecchi Gori.

In 2009 he acquired the Livingston Energy Flight charter airline which would soon be declared bankrupt. For this matter, Ferrero was sentenced by the Court of Busto Arsizio to 1 year and 10 months for misappropriation of funds.

With a surprise announcement in June 2014, he took over Sampdoria, despite his Romanist faith, from Edoardo Garrone free of charge, however, taking on the past debts of the company.

An important fact about Massimo Ferrero is that his entry into the world of football gave him great notoriety, so much so that he earned imitations and many invitations on television with the most famous one in February 2015 at the Sanremo Festival conducted by Carlo Conti.

In recent years, however, there have been several judicial vicissitudes. His ex-wife Laura Sini denounced him for scam and threats, with Ferrero responding by suing her for slander.

In addition to the Livingston affair, Massimo Ferrero then suffered asset seizures by the Rome Public Prosecutor's Office both for the non- payment of taxes relating to film companies, and for the recent history of funds stolen from Sampdoria that would have been used to replenish the coffers of companies attributable to the Sampdoria president.

As for the latter event, Ferrero has obtained the release from seizure of 2.6 million (as well as a property in Florence) after the Court of Review upheld his request, but not avoiding the required indictment.

On 6 December 2021 he was arrested by the Guardia di Finanza who took him to the Milanese prison of Sav Vittore, while five other people including his daughter Vanessa ended up under house arrest, with the request brought forward by Paola's prosecutor which concerns crimes corporate and bankruptcy.

Massimo Ferrero social media

Regarding

Massimo Ferrero social media

, it should be mentioned that he has a twitter account (

) with more than105k followers. He rarely posts new stuff on his Twitter page.

Massimo Ferrero body measurements

Speaking about

Massimo Ferrero body measurements

, it should be mentioned that he is 5 ft 8 168 cm and 70 kg.

Massimo Ferrero net worth and salary

Massimo Ferrero’s net worth

is projected to be about $80 million by 2021. According to a 2016 study by Il FRIDAY, a supplement of La Repubblica, the Sampdoria patron's firms had a revenue of ten million euros, putting them in sixth place in an unique ranking of the other Serie A presidents at the time.

Massimo Ferrero is paid 20,000 euros per year as president of Sampdoria and 960,000 euros per year as CEO. As a result, the entire sum is about 1 million euros.

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