When Como clinched their historical Champions League qualification at the end of the 2025-2026 Serie A campaign, it seemed almost impossible to imagine their star player Nico Paz committing to another season in the Italian Serie A. Not because of the club’s financial strength, as Como are among the strongest clubs in Serie A from that standpoint, nor because of their sporting project, which is only set to become more ambitious in the years ahead. Simply because Real Madrid were controlling his future. It turned out differently for the Argentinian attacking midfielder as Como ended up signing him permanently for around €60 million, a record fee for the Italian club. But how did Como manage to re-sign one of the brightest young stars and talents in world soccer?You can watch Nico Paz and Como battle in Serie A and in the UEFA Champions League live on Paramount +.
A special relationship with Real Madrid
Over the years, Como have established a special relationship with Real Madrid and the Paz deal is just the consequence of it. It all started in the summer of 2024 when Paz signed for Como for the first time. The two clubs agreed on a permanent deal worth $6 million but Real Madrid kept control of the Argentinian player. How so? The Blancos had a 50% sell-on clause in case Paz ended up at another club and in case another club enquired for him, they could have matched the final offer. Additionally, and most importantly, they had the right to re-sign Paz for the upcoming three summer sessions for a €9 million in the first year, €10 million in the second one and then €11 million in the third summer.
For instance, when Tottenham approached Como in the summer of 2025 and offered around €70 million to sign the player, Real Madrid and Como agreed together to refuse the offer and turned it down. One year later, it turned out differently as Como agreed to sign him permanently for around €60 million, while Real Madrid will be able to re-sign the player in the summer of 2027 for €80 million.
The Como project
There are multiple reasons why Paz preferred to stay at Como for another year. First of all, he realized that at Real Madrid it was challenging for him to become a regular starter, especially after the Spanish club signed attacking midfielder Bernardo Silva who plays in a similar role. Then, at Como, he can regularly play in the Champions League after the Italian team clinched the historical achievement at the end of the past season. But Como are not just a team like others that managed to qualify for the top European tournament once; they are just getting started. Their president, Mirwan Suwarso, recently explained to the BBC the idea behind the long-term project and treating it differently than a soccer club.
“Como is a very small town. How can a team which only has a stadium of 12,000 sustain a competitive soccer team? We have to actually grow other areas for revenue, from hospitality and merchandising to retail, moving away from reliance on TV rights,” he stated.
“We’d like to build a brand like Disney. Disney is just a metaphor. The lake is like the theme park, that’s where you come in contact with our products and our brand. We have the merchandising division. Disney sells licensing like the Mickey Mouse brand. So we have a fashion division, retail division with a number of brands sitting in there. Some are about the soccer club. A majority of it is about the lifestyle of the lake or what we call ‘lago lifestyle’ that also has appealed to celebrities.”
Last but not least, the coach: Cesc Fabregas is considered one of the most interesting young managers around. He embodies the spirit of the club and his team plays an intriguing football. Paz is the perfect player for Fabregas and the two have a special relationship, as the same coach stated multiple times over the past season and even after they re-signed him. Real Madrid or other top European clubs can wait; Paz is at Como to stay for at least one more year and looking to already build off the incredible standards and heights they’ve quickly surpassed.
