Fabrizio Romano supports surprise English team and the reason why is so bizarre

Fabrizio Romano is one of the most recognisable and influential people in football today, but fans were left surprised when they found out which club he supports.

Romano started as an 18-year-old with TuttoMercatoWeb and now has over 53.7 million followers across Instagram and X, as well as 2.3 million YouTube subscribers.

The Italian journalist is the main man for transfer news and you can tell that he absolutely loves how crazy the transfer market can be - even if it means he gets very little sleep.

Romano is from Naples, Italy, so you'd think he would be a follower of Serie A side Napoli.

However, it turns out that the Romano actually supports championship side Watford because he used to play with them on both FIFA and Football Manager.

The Hornets have Italian owners in the Pozzo family, which only added to his love for the club.

"Honestly... I support Watford because it has been my club on Fifa and Football manager since 15 years!" Romano tweeted in 2019.

"And because of their Italian ownership! I’d like to come back at Vicarage [Road] soon."

honestly... I support Watford because it has been my club on Fifa and Football manager since 15 years! And because of their Italian ownership! I’d like to come back at Vicarage soon @WatfordFC 😀

— Fabrizio Romano (@FabrizioRomano) August 9, 2019

Watford even reacted to the tweet and told Romano he was welcome anytime at Vicarage Road. He's been to the stadium four times, having had tickets to a game from midfielder Valon Behrami when he was playing for the club.

Italians Diego Fabbrini, Marco Motta, Marco Cassetti & Fernando Forestieri are among his favourite players to have turned out for Watford.

In 2023 Romano was invited for a special tour of Vicarage Road - ten years on from its most memorable moment when Troy Deeney scored a dramatic, last-gasp play-off semi-final winner.

"I was watching live the famous match, Watford vs Leicester, Vicarage Road," Romano said on his YouTube channel in September.

"It was incredible, the feeling when Troy Deeney scored the goal the last-minute goal after Manuel Almunia saving the penalty in the key match of the play-offs was unbelievable.

"The feeling I had when we had the famous Troy Deeney goal was something unforgettable to me. So that’s how it started for me to support Watford."