A Bocconian Balancing the Books of The Ryder Cup

MARIA SALVAGGIO IS A CLEACC GRADUATE AND CURRENT HEAD OF ADMINISTRATION, FINANCE AND CONTROL AT FEDERGOLF. SHE WAS RESPONSIBLE FOR THE FINANCES OF A SPORTING EVENT UNLIKE ANY IN THE WORLD, AND A SUCCESSFUL ONE AT THAT

“It is the third largest media sporting event in the world, after the Olympics and the World Cup.” Nonetheless, the Ryder Cup in years past did not even come close in appeal to those events; that is, until recently when Rome hosted the competition at the end of September – marking the public’s shift on the sport and affirming its growing popularity. “The public is still riding the wave of the Ryder Cup,” says Maria Salvaggio, CLEACC graduate from Sicily and current Head of Administration, Finance and Control at FederGolf. “It is a world-renowned sporting event that will help the sport’s growth really take off in Italy.” Starting from 2015 when Italy won the bid, the competition required meticulous organization – from resource procurement to dialogue among various bodies – and ended up being a great success. “A total of 271,000 spectators of mostly non-Italians showed up to the Marco Simone Golf & Country Club for the three-day competition. We had a record crowd, proving that Italy can host large events even in complex cities like Rome,” continues Maria Salvaggio.

At the beginning of her studies and career, Maria could not have imagined that much of it would take place in a sports federation. “I came to Bocconi, where my sister actually studied Economic and Social Sciences, interested in a new program that had just started that year – the degree in Economics and Management for Arts, Culture and Communication.” She immediately seized the opportunity also thanks to her scholarship, awarded based on income and merit, which covered all of her tuition and living expenses. “It was a ‘sine qua non’ to come to Bocconi, and I have to say that it has helped to empower me. It was a significant decision, helping shape a lot of who I am and allowing me to establish myself as a professional in a field I enjoy.” This new study path was finally created in 1999, one that considers cultural heritage as a sector to be approached with managerial criteria. Sometimes, however, being the first comes with some disadvantages. “It was hard for this path to be recognized in the real world; during interviews I sensed confusion among my counterparts. I specialized mainly in accounting, working first at a consulting firm and then at a pharmaceutical distribution company.”

In 2010, the Italian National Olympic Committee (CONI) called Maria. “There I met an executive who was very impressed with my university path, and I began to deal mainly with the management and accounting control of the various Federations as well as the economic feasibility of events and investments. It was really challenging, though, because the sports federations in those years had recently made the switch to the accrual accounting system, and many of the smaller federations were not very structured in terms of processes and procedures.” When Italy won the bid to host the Ryder Cup in 2015, Maria collaborated with the Golf Federation on behalf of CONI and then permanently started working with the Foundation in 2017. For Maria, these eight exciting yet complex years were extremely rewarding; now it is time to capitalize on this success. “Golf, thanks to events such as the Ryder Cup, is shedding its dusty image as an elitist sport, and the Italian Golf Federation is hard at work with many projects in the name of inclusion.”
Sports – for those who are fortunate enough to work in the field, even if in an administrative capacity – is a somewhat privileged field. Maria Salvaggio knows this: “Sports are a living thing, and feed on young people with passion. It has been a positive and wonderful experience being part of it, even when it was not part of the initial plan.”

by Davide Ripamonti
Translated by Rosa Palmieri