Why this is worth 3 minutes of your time:
How sport sponsorships turned a coffee company into a €1.2B global brand
What investors must know about NBA Europe and youth development
How one basketball club became one of Europe’s most decorated
Massimo Zanetti put Ayrton Senna in his first Formula 1 car.
At the 1984 Monaco Grand Prix, Senna’s white Toleman carried the Segafredo Zanetti name with its red “S” below the cockpit.
©️ Segafredo Zanetti
This week we spoke with Massimo Zanetti: Founder of Segafredo Zanetti (€1.2B revenues) and owner of Virtus Pallacanestro Bologna.
Massimo Zanetti invested in Formula 1 and boxing in the 1980’s to promote his coffee business internationally.
In 2017, he became majority owner of Virtus Bologna, one of Europe’s most decorated basketball clubs.
Since then, the club has won the Basketball Champions League (2019), the EuroCup (2022), and 2 Italian league titles (Scudetti in 2021 and 2024/25).
👇 How Massimo’s championship‑winning ownership model works
📌 What Makes This Ownership Model Work
1. Genuine fan engagement = 1.05M fans in Italy (up 81% since 2018) with 6,071 average attendance per game
2. €28.6M for Bologna = Virtus generated €28.6M in local economic impact during the 2024/25 season
3. Family‑first recruitment = Virtus builds player‑family ties and a warm Bologna environment, attracting and retaining talent
4. 41 youth championships = Proven pipeline for national team and NBA-scouted talent
5. NBA Legacy = 74 Virtus alumni reached NBA/ABA level winning 16 titles
🎯 Massimo on NBA Europe & Local Pride
“The envisioned European super‑league faces challenges due to lack of deep‑rooted fan culture in big cities like Paris, London, and Rome. Investing without a strong local fan base and tradition is risky, failures of Italian basketball teams in major cities show this clearly.”
Next week: a conversation with Massimo Marinelli. He founded Berkida Ventures and led Aser Ventures as CEO & Managing Partner, overseeing the disposals of Eleven Sports to DAZN Group and Leeds United to 49ers Enterprises.
Best,
Edoardo Grandi
