Massimo Cellino

Massimo Cellino (Italian pronunciation: [ˈmasːimo tʃelː'iːno]; born 28 July 1956) is an Italian entrepreneur and football club owner. Through his family trust Eleonora Sport Ltd, he is a 50% shareholder and chairman of the English club Leeds United.

Cellino was the chairman of the Italian association football club Cagliari Calcio. He has served as vice-president for Serie A in the Lega Calcio.

During his years as owner of Cagliari Calcio, Cellino was instrumental in the building of their sports centre in Assemini, near Cagliari, named after his father Ercole.

Diego López was sacked by Cellino as Cagliari manager on 6 April 2014, this being the 36th manager change he went through in 22 years of his tenure at Cagliari Calcio. Cellino earned the nickname Il mangia-allenatori, "The Manager Eater".

Cellino intended to sell Cagliari Calcio, and has said that an agreed sale failed due to the wish of the prospective buyers for him to stay and run the club. He finally sold the club to the Italian entrepreneur Tommaso Giulini on June 2014 after 22 years of ownership.

In January 2014, speculation grew that Leeds would be subject to takeover by Cellino. A delegation representing Cellino was seen at Elland Road, Leeds' stadium, and the Thorp Arch training ground several times, and on 28 January it was reported that Cellino had asked for his associate and former Middlesbrough defender Gianluca Festa to sit in the dugout for Leeds' 1–1 draw with Ipswich. Cellino had previously tried to buy West Ham United in 2010.

On 31 January it was reported that Brian McDermott had been sacked as manager of the club, with Gianluca Festa speculated in the media as his most likely replacement. The following day reports emerged suggesting Gulf Finance House (GFH) club directors were attempting to reinstate McDermott as manager, saying the Cellino family (the club's prospective new owners) had no authority to dismiss him. On 1 February, McDermott's Elland Road assistant Nigel Gibbs was named as caretaker manager for the club's home derby against Huddersfield Town. Following the game, the club released an official statement stating McDermott had not been dismissed and remained first team manager.

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