The manager previously worked as Managing Director Revenue & Institutional Relations for Milan-listed Juventus
Premier Leauge Aston Villa Football Club (AVFC) appointed Francesco Calvo as President of Business Operations for replacing Christopher Heck that will resign at the end of 2024/2025 season (press release). V Sports scs, a joint venture that Nassef Sawiris and Wesley Edens (the founder of Fortress Investment Group) own the majority of the club, while US private equity Atairos acquired a minority in 2024 (press release).
Calvo previously worked as Managing Director Revenue & Institutional Relations for Milan-listed Juventus and will join Aston Villa on 15 July, Tuesday.
Calvo has been responsible for Juventus commercial and relations with key institutional stakeholders in soccer, such as FIFA, UEFA, ECA and Serie A. The manager also worked with FC Barcelona and AS Roma.
Calvo said: “It is a great honor for me to join this club. Everyone in the soccer world knows the history and passionate support for Aston Villa. In recent years this has been accompanied by successes on the field and significant progress off the field, mirroring the ambitions of shareholder V Sports. I look forward to working with the Chairman, the Board, Unai Emery and the entire Aston Villa team to continue to lead this great Premier institution.”
Sawiris, Aston Villa FC executive chairman, added: “We are pleased to welcome Francesco Calvo to Aston Villa. He has a strong track record at some of Europe’s biggest clubs and brings with him a wealth of experience and vision. Our ambition is for Aston Villa to compete at the highest level, both on and off the field. Francis’ skills, relationships and experience will prove invaluable in turning this ambition into reality”.
In 2024, Aston Villa generated revenues of 275.7 million GBPs (+27% from 217.7 million in 2023) (press release). A significant part of this increase, the club explained in a note released in late March 2025, is due to fourth place in the Premier League, up from seventh place the year before, and participation in the UEFA Europa Conference League semifinals. The club also made significant progress in sponsorship and commercial revenues, which is expected to continue into the 2024/2025 season. The net result of these changes is that the club recorded a net operating loss of 85.4 million, compared with a loss of 119.6 million in the previous year.
