Lagos-born England legend becomes first black woman to own a club in Italy

Lagos-born Three Lionesses legend Eniola Aluko has become the first black woman to own a club in Italy after acquiring a major stake in FC Como’s female team, Soccernet.ng reports.

Aluko was born in Lagos to Nigerian parents in 1987, but she and her parents moved to England when she was still a baby. Eventually, she naturalized to England, snubbed Nigeria and started playing for the female team.

The 37-year-old played as a winger, and played for clubs like Birmingham City, Charlton Athletic, Chelsea, Atlanta Beat, and Juventus. She also registered 102 appearances for the Three Lionesses, helping them claim bronze at the 2015 World Cup and silver at the 2009 Euros.

Aluko retired from active football in 2020, and she has gone into a variety of activities since then. The former England Lioness worked as a director of women’s football at Aston Villa and the sporting director of Angel City before leaving the position last year. She has also worked as a pundit recently.

In a new development, per her X page, Aluko has become the first African woman to own a club in Italy, after becoming a part of a $100 million ownership group, known as Mercury 13, which acquired a majority stake in FC Como.

Como Women was just founded in 2020, and they have a 3,700-capacity stadium. They currently play in the top-flight of the Italian Serie A.

Eniola Aluko is the sister of former Super Eagles player Sone Aluko.