The San Jose Earthquakes announced the hiring of Jesse Fioranelli as their new general manager on Thursday, marking an intriguing new arrival to the Quakes front office.
A Maryland native, Fioranelli arrives in San Jose having served in senior positions at Italian power AS Roma and several other top-flight European clubs, as well as several years as a player agent. Fioranelli will be introduced on Tuesday at Avaya Stadium. Chris Leitch, the team's interim GM since August, will remain on staff as the technical director.
"We are excited to welcome Jesse to the Quakes family," said Earthquakes president Dave Kaval in a club release. "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," or Sporting Direction unit, at Roma, where he played an integral role in overseeing a comprehensive club management program – dubbed “The Roma Way” – in the areas of player scouting, match analysis, player-centric development and recruitment for the first team and youth system. He was also responsible for expanding Roma's scouting and relationship networks with clubs, agents and federations throughout Europe and Latin America, including a 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 in a statement. "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 and Dominic [Kinnear, San Jose's head coach] 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 last season with a 23-4-11 record, earning a spot in the UEFA Champions League qualifying round. The Giallorossi scored the most goals (83) and suffered the fewest defeats (4) of any team in Italy's top division; at the time of his departure, Roma currently occupy second place in this season's Serie A race with a 12-4-2 record.
Before Roma, Fioranelli worked as the head of analysis for their crosstown rivals Lazio from July 2012 to June 2015. There he oversaw player and match analysis, and scouting and recruitment efforts for the club, working closely with the Lazio youth academy, whose director he recruited. During his stint with the Biancocelesti, the Rome club won the 2012-13 Coppa Italia, qualified for the 2013-14 UEFA Europa League and finished third in Serie A in 2014-15, gaining qualification for the 2015-16 UEFA Champions League qualifying round.
Fioranelli previously served as head of analysis for Turkish club Samsunspor. He also possesses six-plus years of experience as a player agent at management firms First Artist and the FIO Agency, and has experience in the private insurance industry, serving high-net-worth clientele as a business manager for Zurich Private Banking Solutions.
A graduate of Towson High School in Maryland, Fioranelli attended Franklin College in Switzerland and obtained an MBA from the University of Wales; he speaks English, German, Italian, Spanish and French.
