Spezia said Thursday that the family
of American finance businessman Robert Platek have bought the
Serie A club from the holding company of Gabriele Volpi.
The Platek family includes brothers Robert and Philip Platek;
Robert's wife, Laurie Platek; and Robert's children, Amanda,
Caroline, and Robert Jr.
"We are thrilled to announce the acquisition of Spezia Calcio.
Serie A football is in an elite class of its own, and it has
been our long-held ambition to find the right opportunity to
partner with a special club in Italy," the New York-based family
said in a statement.
"From the time of our initial conversations, we have been
extremely aligned with the mission, ethos, and ethic of Spezia
Calcio.
"The club embodies the hard-work and humility espoused by the
people of the surrounding area - values shared by our family.
"We are humbled by this opportunity to become stewards of the
club.
"As a family, we are proud to play a small role in helping the
team to grow, achieve further success and make the fans proud".
Spezia won promotion to the top flight for the first time ever
last season and they are currently 16th in the standings.
Longtime owner Volpi said he and his family were happy the
Pateks could "further improve the club's mission" and said "we
gave the club and the city all the support we could".
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