SAN JOSE, Calif. – The San Jose Earthquakes announced today that the club has hired Jesse Fioranelli as general manager. Fioranelli brings a diverse background to San Jose, having served time in senior positions on technical staffs and club management roles of several top-flight European clubs and more than six years as a player agent.
“We are excited to welcome Jesse to the Quakes family,” said Earthquakes President Dave Kaval. “He has a tremendous, well-rounded resume that immediately impressed us and we believe the team’s technical side is in excellent hands moving forward. The search to find a general manager proved to be lengthy, but we’re happy that the thorough process has led us to a candidate of Jesse’s quality.”
Fioranelli was most recently a member of the “Direzione Sportiva”, the Sporting Direction unit for AS Roma since July 2015, where he played an integral role in overseeing a comprehensive club management program – The Roma Way – in the areas of player scouting, match analysis, player-centric development and recruitment for the first team and youth system. Fioranelli was also responsible for further expanding Roma´s market intelligence and relationship network throughout Europe and Latin America with clubs, agents and federations, including player-development collaboration with Germany´s National Team ahead of Euro 2016.
“I am honored to be part of the Quakes family and to open this exciting chapter in my life,” said Fioranelli. “From the moment I met Dave and ownership, I felt a strong connection with the Quakes organization, its people and the exciting opportunities we will strive for in the future together. I also spoke with Chris (Leitch) and Dominic (Kinnear) and I am looking forward to working with both of them. We´re committed to bringing a brand of football from the first team through the youth sector that the community can be proud of.”
With Fioranelli on staff, Roma finished third in Serie A during the 2015-16 season with a 23-4-11 record, earning a spot in the 2016-17 UEFA Champions League Playoff round. That season, the club scored the most goals (83) and suffered the fewest defeats (4) of any team in Italy’s top division. Roma sits in second place in Serie A so far during the 2016-17 season with a 12-4-2 record at the time of his departure from the club.
Prior to joining Roma, Fioranelli was the head of analysis for Lazio from July 2012 to June 2015. In his role, Fioranelli oversaw player and match analysis, and scouting and recruitment efforts for the Italian club. He also worked closely with the SS Lazio Academy and recruited the academy’s director. During his stint with Lazio, the Rome-based club won the 2012-13 Coppa Italia, qualified for the 2013-14 UEFA Europa League, and finished third in Serie A in 2014-15 (21-11-6), resulting in qualification for the 2015-16 UEFA Champions League Playoff round. The club’s third-place finish that season was their highest since 2006-07 and their 69 points earned is their highest ever since Serie A expanded to a 38-game schedule in 2002.
For seven months prior to his stint with Lazio, Fioranelli was the head of analysis for Samsunspor of the Turkish first division. During this brief time with the Turkish club, Fioranelli was responsible for player scouting during the 2011-12 winter transfer market and conducted pre- and post-game video analysis of every match.
In addition to his extensive background on the team side, Fioranelli also possesses more than six years of experience as a player agent at stock-listed soccer management firm First Artist Plc (London AIM) as well as at the FIO Agency. He represented clients and concluded player transfers throughout Europe, North America and Latin America. Fioranelli also has experience in the private insurance industry, serving high-net-worth and ultra-high-net-worth clientele as a business manager for Zurich Private Banking Solutions throughout Italy and Monte Carlo for one year.
After attending Towson High School in Maryland, Fioranelli attended Franklin College in Switzerland and obtained an MBA from the University of Wales. His recent publication, Why Invest in Italian Football, received special recognition by the Italian Football Federation, FIGC. Fioranelli also delivered the keynote at various sporting conferences in Europe and speaks English, German, Italian, Spanish and French.
Chris Leitch, the team’s interim general manager since August, will remain on staff as the technical director.
