Former Roma and Italian national team midfielder Daniele De Rossi has bought Ostiamare, the semi-professional football club where he began his career. De Rossi has pledged to build a solid team in the coastal suburb of Rome where the team is based.
Ostiamare, founded in 1945, plays in the fourth tier of the Italian league system.
“My goal will be to work to build a solid, transparent and innovative club, a means of bringing people together, promoting community values and bringing families closer to their area, with the pride of representing Ostia on and off the pitch,” Rossi wrote on Instagram.
De Rossi, who was sacked as Roma coach in September after a mixed start to the season, was a mainstay of the Serie A side as a player for almost two decades before leaving in 2019.
He also played 117 times for Italy, winning the World Cup with the Azzurri in 2006 d.
It all started in Ostiamare, where De Rossi played for the youth team between 1997 and 2000.