Rhuigi Villaseñor is lending his creative prowess to the sports world.
The fashion designer behind Rhude and R.H.U. by Zara has been named the chief brand officer of Italian football club Como 1907, which is returning to Serie A this season for the first time in 21 years. Villaseñor, who is also a minority owner of the team, stated his overall goal for the appointment is to turn the club into a lifestyle brand, looking at areas such as fashion, hospitality and consumer goods.
“With this role, I wanted to take on a space that wasn’t really the same as fashion because for me, I already have that with my baby Rhude and R.H.U. and I’ve been thinking a lot about the business of fashion in general and how it’s like a wave,” Villaseñor said. “So for me, I wanted to be a part of something that was a bit more concrete. It wasn’t determined by opinions or trends — at the end of the day, it’s sports.”
Villaseñor explained he’s inspired by the deep fandom and loyalty among soccer fans and wants Como 1907 to become a “globalized IP and a globalized name” that can appeal to a wide range of people.
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He also believes the appeal of Lake Como as a destination gives the team an added layer of intrigue among fans that adds to the club’s ability to become a lifestyle brand.
“Italians would hate for me to say it, but [Lake Como is] much more American than Italians would realize it to be because it’s become like a centralized hub for Italy,” he said. “When you look at Italy, people have their destination places, but I think Como can become like a Los Angeles, and then someone from Los Angeles that knows how to also build brands can use this as a way to catapult the volume of Como. For me, it’s leaning into the obvious. I respect the native Como people, but I like to approach it — I hate to say — like a tourist coming in and leaning into the obvious and building lifestyle brands around it.”
As part of the role, Villaseñor will create fashion and merchandise collections. The designer gave a sneak peek at what Como 1907 fans can expect from the collections during his Rhude spring 2025 ready-to-wear men’s runway show, which he also hosted in Lake Como. The collection included styles like co-branded Lago di Como rugby shirts and baseball caps.
“I started Rhude with an eye of a tourist coming into America and what I thought the American dream was,” Villaseñor said about the upcoming collections. “This is me sort of looking at what the Italian George Clooney villa dream is. I don’t want to mention too many of the names, but I think it would be like the big houses of sports meets Loro Piana and Rhude and all that.”
Additionally, Villaseñor is planning collaborations and exclusive drops for the team.
Villaseñor’s appointment to Como 1907 comes after the designer held a similar role with NHL team the Arizona Coyotes from 2022 to 2023. Under the role of creative strategist, Villaseñor created several collections and new iterations of the team’s hockey jerseys.
The designer described his time with the Arizona Coyotes as “premature,” saying that neither he nor the team “knew what we were doing.
“It’s about learning from our mistakes and adapting,” he said. “With Como, it’s a much bigger juggernaut and a much bigger thing at stake for me. Also, being that I am a minority owner of the club, there’s a lot more at stake.”
Villaseñor’s collections for Como 1907 will release next year.
