Fiorentina Owner Rocco Commisso Embroiled in Social Media Controversy

Rocco Commisso, the owner of Italian football club Fiorentina, has found himself in legal hot water over his use of fake social media accounts. The businessman recently testified in a lawsuit against Major League Soccer (MLS) and the US Soccer Federation, where it was revealed that he had been using anonymous Twitter accounts to criticize these organizations.

The controversy stems from a 2017 decision by US Soccer to deny the North American Soccer League (NASL) its second-division status. Commisso, who was the NASL chairman and owner of the New York Cosmos at the time, took issue with this decision and subsequently filed a lawsuit seeking $170 million in damages.

During the legal proceedings, it came to light that Commisso had been operating an anonymous Twitter account called “Global Soccer Fan.” Through this account, he launched scathing attacks against MLS Commissioner Don Garber and then-US Soccer President Sunil Gulati. In some particularly inflammatory tweets, Commisso compared these officials to disgraced figures such as Harvey Weinstein and Bernie Madoff.

When confronted with this evidence in court, Commisso admitted to writing the controversial tweets himself. He expressed remorse for his actions, stating, “I don’t feel good about what I did because it’s not like me. I’ve stopped using the Twitter account. I haven’t tweeted in the last five or six years, and I’m happy I’ve stopped with all social media.”

This admission has cast a shadow over Commisso’s legal battle and raised questions about the ethics of using anonymous social media accounts to attack rivals in the sports industry. The case continues to unfold, with potential implications for both Commisso’s reputation and the broader landscape of US soccer politics.