Roma Stock Surges as Mourinho Joins in Surprise Appointment

(Bloomberg) -- A.S. Roma SpA shares jumped the most in six months after the Italian soccer club named two-time Champions League-winner Jose Mourinho as its new coach.

The stock surged as much as 26%, the most since November last year, and was 19% higher as of 5 p.m. in Milan, on volume that was almost 16 times the three-month daily average.

The surprise appointment comes just two weeks after the 58-year-old was fired from Tottenham Hotspur, with the club lying seventh in England’s Premier League. Mourinho joined Spurs in 2019, about a year after he was removed as manager of Manchester United following a disappointing run of results.

But, despite Mourinho’s less-than-stellar records at Tottenham and United, the appointment is still a coup for Roma, a team that hasn’t won Italy’s top league for two decades. The Portuguese is one of global soccer’s most recognized managers and has won the domestic title in four different European nations, including Italy.

Roma are currently seventh in Serie A, while Mourinho’s former team, Inter Milan, was crowned champions this past weekend with four matches to spare. Mourinho left Italy in a blaze of glory in 2010, heading to Real Madrid after overseeing Inter’s first European Cup win in 45 years, alongside league title and domestic cup honors.

Mourinho has signed a three-year contract, Roma said in a statement. The news comes after U.S. billionaire Dan Friedkin agreed to buy the team last year.

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