The world of Italian football can often be a wacky place and, in truth, an ecosystem that mirrors society up and down the peninsula. 

That being said, Ternana made headlines this month for something that has rarely been seen in the chaotic, masculine-fuelled world of calcio: a female president.

Not only that, but a 23-year-old female president. Uncharted territory.

The story attracted attention around the globe, with Claudia Rizzo’s press conference and images of her in a Ternana shirt with her name on the back, circling far and wide.

“We are going to put passion and determination into this, step by step,” said Rizzo. “I’ve always been a big fan of Ternana. During the negotiations, it was suggested to me to take over as president. 

“It’s a great responsibility but also an opportunity. I feel much more confident with experienced staff and I am confident that the club will move forward.”

Rizzo is the daughter of Italian multi-millionaire Gian Luigi Rizzo, owner of the investment group Gruppo Villa Claudia that specialises in the private healthcare sector.

The group bought the club in September, snapping up 100% of the shares. The announcement came following Ternana’s 2-0 home win against Carpi.

In Serie C, Ternana will hope the new owners can bring a level of stability after years of less-than-stable custodians. 

Rizzo is not the first female president in the Italian game, however. Rosella Sensi, daughter of legendary Roma president Franco Sensi, took over the running of the club in the wake of her father’s death in 2008, and would have gone down in history as the first female president to win Serie A had Giampaolo Pazzini’s double for Sampdoria against the Giallorossi not crushed their chances of the Scudetto in late April 2010.

Yet Sensi wasn’t even the first woman to hold the position at Roma. Flora Viola took over the reins following the death of her husband Dino in 1991.

While Viola, then in her late 60s, held on to the position for only three months, Sensi was president of the Giallorossi for three years, stepping down after the club was sold in early 2011 amid rising debt.

Around the same time as Sensi, Francesca Menarini became the president of Bologna after the club was taken over by the Menarini family. 

Her story with the Rossoblu ended in ignominy, as she was banned from football for three months in 2010 for seeking advice from one Luciano Moggi.

Moggi, the dark lord of calcio, was of course banned from the game following the events of Calciopoli. Several weeks later the family sold 80% of their shares to Sergio Porcedda as money issues plagued the club.

Yet things ended better for Sensi. She was elected vice-chair of the newly formed Lega Serie A in 2010 and is currently the mayor of Visso, a small town in the Marche region.

But what separates Ternana’s new president from Sensi, Viola and Menarini is her age. Sensi and Menarini were in their 30s and 40s when taking the lead at Roma and Bologna. 

At 23 (some outlets have reported her age to be 25) Rizzo is an anomaly. A young and female president could be overawed in the alpha-male football landscape.

Case and point was her opening press conference. Former Sampdoria owner Massimo Ferrero, who helped broker the deal, sat beside Rizzo and in typical Ferrero fashion, made it all about himself.

Time and again Ferrero cut Rizzo off, talked over her or filled in the gaps when she was considering her response to a question.

Ferrero is exactly the kind of man Rizzo will have to deal with in the lower levels of the Italian pyramid: relics from a bygone era.

Yet she has business experience and is not just the result of nepotism. In what almost laughably sounds Godfather-esque, Rizzo managed the family’s olive oil business in Sicily before being handed the reins at Ternana.

“The first task is to build a strong bond with the team and the city. We will reintroduce an online subscription campaign,” she added at her unveiling. 

“I’m experiencing a thousand emotions, but above all I see Ternana as an honour and a responsibility.”

Yet Rizzo is not the youngest president in the history of the Italian game. 

In the same year Sensi took over from her father, 21-year-old Alessandro Ruggeri inherited Atalanta from his dad, with Ivan suffering a stroke, and in the process becoming the youngest president of all time.

Umberto Agnelli, younger brother to the legendary Gianni, became boss of Juventus in 1955 at the tender age of 22. 

Rizzo has made history by becoming the youngest female boss. But can she lift Ternana out of the quagmire that is the Italian third tier?