Ryan Friedkin steps up to run Roma transfer plans

Ryan Friedkin has moved to the center of AS Roma’s football planning as the club prepares for the summer transfer window, according to multiple Italian media reports in May. The reports say Friedkin, Roma’s vice president, has been leading talks on the club’s sporting structure, the choice of sporting director and the outline of recruitment for next season. Roma has not issued a public statement announcing any change to the sporting director role as of May 21. AS Roma’s own website identifies Ryan Friedkin as vice president in club communications, including statements on ownership matters and commercial announcements. The club also announced on June 19, 2025, that Frederic Massara had been appointed sporting director, with club media later saying he had signed through 2028. Gian Piero Gasperini was appointed head coach on June 6, 2025, in a club statement that said ownership and Claudio Ranieri backed the choice. ### Why is Ryan Friedkin’s role drawing attention now? Italian sports daily Corriere dello Sport reported on May 14 that Ryan Friedkin had arrived in Rome ahead of schedule to “put his hand on the club’s future,” with the sporting director search among the main files on his desk. The paper reported on May 15 that Friedkin was setting priorities from an office inside the training center and was involved in contract and squad decisions. Romanews.eu reported on May 20 that Friedkin had “taken in hand” Roma’s agenda on the sporting director, renewals, transfers, the stadium and the club’s future structure. (asroma.com) Those reports stop short of citing an official club decree, but they are consistent on one point: ownership is directly involved in day-to-day sporting choices at Trigoria. Corriere dello Sport also reported on May 3 that Friedkin had returned to Italy and immersed himself in the search for a new sporting director who would work alongside Gasperini. (corrieredellosport.it) ### What is the situation with Frederic Massara? AS Roma announced Massara’s appointment as sporting director on June 19, 2025, calling it a return to Trigoria. Club media said the agreement ran until 2028. No official Roma statement reviewed on May 21 said Massara had left the post. Italian media reports, however, describe an open discussion around the sporting director position. (corrieredellosport.it) Corriere dello Sport reported on May 1 and May 14 that the club was already working through options for a new sporting director, while ForzaRoma.info and Romanews.eu also described Friedkin’s meetings as focused on the post-Massara setup. Those accounts indicate a live process rather than a completed formal change. (asroma.com) ### How does Gasperini fit into the decisions? Gian Piero Gasperini is central to the current planning because Roma’s own June 2025 announcement said ownership backed him for the job. Italian outlets have since reported that Friedkin and Gasperini have been in direct contact over the sporting director choice, contract renewals and the makeup of the squad for the next season. (corrieredellosport.it) ForzaRoma.info reported that Friedkin was due at Trigoria for meetings with Gasperini on “strategies of mercato,” while Romanews.eu said the two were discussing a broader reorganization that included the sporting department and other club functions. Those descriptions come from media reports, not a public Roma briefing, but they point to Gasperini’s role as a participant in the planning process rather than a bystander. (asroma.com) ### Is Roma changing its structure or just tightening control? Ryan Friedkin’s involvement in stadium matters and club governance is already visible in official Roma material. AS Roma said in a previous statement on the stadium project that top management was represented by Vice President Ryan Friedkin in a meeting with Rome Mayor Roberto Gualtieri. That establishes a formal executive role beyond football operations. (forzaroma.info) Recent Italian reporting goes further by describing a concentration of sporting oversight in Friedkin’s hands. Corriere dello Sport wrote that no mandate had been given to Massara to act on some issues before Ryan Friedkin’s arrival, and Romanews.eu described Friedkin as guiding the choices that will accompany the club into next season. Those are media characterizations, and Roma had not publicly confirmed a revised org chart by May 21. (asroma.com) ### What should readers watch next at Trigoria? May 2026 is the key period to watch because the next visible step is the club’s decision on the sporting director role and the transfer plan for Gasperini’s first full recruitment cycle. Corriere dello Sport and other Roma-focused outlets have tied Friedkin’s Rome visit to meetings on renewals, outgoing deals and the summer market. (corrieredellosport.it) AS Roma’s next formal signal is likely to come through an official club statement if it changes the sporting director structure or confirms summer appointments. Until then, the named participants remain Ryan Friedkin, Frederic Massara and Gian Piero Gasperini, with the work centered at the Fulvio Bernardini training center in Trigoria. (asroma.com) (corrieredellosport.it)