This is not just another collaboration; it is a reflection of place and pace. The first release from the new Como Black Label collection distills the rhythm of lake life, where time slows, reflections stretch, and movement becomes intention.

Cut from smooth white leather with black detailing, the design balances athleticism with precision. The COMO wordmark runs across the central stripe, while the club crest sits discreetly on the tongue, subtle and confident. Perforated panels and refined stitching nod to Italian tailoring, bringing sophistication to a classic court silhouette. Beneath, Cloudfoam cushioning grounds the look in quiet comfort, the kind that makes you walk differently, unhurried.

“As Chief Brand Officer of Como 1907 and Sent Retail, I want our work to carry the essence of Lake Como lifestyle,” says Rhuigi Villaseñor. “The Como Black Label is about grace over noise, luxury that moves with you, not ahead of you.”

The result is a study in restraint, a sneaker that embodies Villaseñor’s vision of sport meeting style, culture meeting calm. It is an evolution of Como’s identity, extending from the terraces to the shoreline, from match day to the moment after.

Like the lake itself, the Como Black Label feels timeless and deliberate, made not for the rush but for the stroll.

Available now online at shop.comofootball.com and instore.

Elena arrives with a smile that gives away her style long before she talks tactics. Yes, she is a center back who loves a physical duel, but when she is away from the stadium she switches easily into storyteller mode, sharing the journey that brought her from Milan to Tennessee to Florence to Genoa and now to Como. “My goal every game is simple, do not concede,” she says, laughing as she admits she enjoys the battles as much as the clean sheets. “I love defending against opponents. It gives me energy.”

The episode shows a different side of her. The one who spends her mornings meditating for ten or thirty minutes depending on the day. The one who takes friends straight to the stadium when they visit, then leads them on long lakefront walks and ferry rides. The one who reads, explores, and finds calm in the forest behind her house. “Nature gives me a feeling of freedom,” she says. Here on the lake, that freedom is everywhere.

She also talks about leadership with the same ease. Not in a heavy way, but with the kind of self awareness that comes from years in dressing rooms across Italy. “Football taught me that I can be important for people on and off the field,” she says. Teammates trust her, look to her, and she carries that with pride.

Choosing Como, she reveals, was a decision that came at the perfect time. “Last summer I was confused,” she admits. “But when Como came with a big project and a strong will to have me, I did not have many doubts.” Now she wants to give something back. She wants to help build a team, a culture, a memory. Her hope is that people will remember her as reliable, grounded, and someone who always gave her best.

But the joy of this episode is not only in the words. It is watching Elena in a place that feels made for her. With the lake behind her, gardens around her, and sunlight catching the water, the conversation feels relaxed and wide open. She is funny, honest, thoughtful, and completely at ease.

It is the kind of setting that makes you want to step through the screen and join her for a walk down to the ferry.

See the full interview on Como TV.

Como, 28th November — Como 1907 introduces the Como Gaming Club, a new chapter in the Club’s cultural universe. It brings the world of gaming into the wider Como experience, guided by the same sense of design, calm and community that shapes everything connected to the lake.

The Como Gaming Club is not framed as an esports department. It is a creative space that brings together fans, creators, families, and young people through play, culture and contemporary language. 

The story begins with Anders Vejrgang. One of the most recognised young players in the EA SPORTS FC scene, Anders joins Como 1907 as the new pro player for the Lariani. He will represent the Club in the EA SPORTS FC eSupercup 2025 and the eSerie A Goleador 2026, wearing the new colours and insignia created for the project. His arrival signals the intention behind the Como Gaming Club: to enter gaming with care, ambition and a clear identity rather than simply opening an esports department. Anders will meet fans during Milan Games Week as part of the Club’s presence at the DNSTY stand and the event’s main activities.

“The launch of the Como Gaming Club is a natural next step in our mission to connect Como 1907 with new generations and emerging cultural spaces. Gaming and eSports are their own culture and language, and if we were going to enter that world, we knew we had to do so with intention, a clear identity and a long-term vision. Bringing Anders on board speaks to the level of thought, care, and seriousness we’re putting behind this project. This isn’t a side quest. It’s a community we’re committed to building.” said Ryan Shelton, Chief Revenue Officer of Como 1907. 

The Como Gaming Club will host community sessions, collaborations with creators and partners, and a new stream of visual storytelling inspired by the rhythm of the lake. The launch includes a dedicated logo and official Instagram page, created as the home for this growing community. A first line of merchandise will debut at Milan Games Week, including a hat, t-shirt, sweatshirt and a gaming jersey developed in collaboration with Team Falcons, current Esports World Cup champions.

The project is already part of the internal life of the Club. Employees from across Como 1907 have joined the League of Brands, a national tournament for Italian companies. The Como team has reached the Final Four, taking place on Sunday, November 30. Their involvement reflects the spirit of the Como Gaming Club: a place where play, culture and connection can sit naturally alongside football.

With the Como Gaming Club, Como 1907 continues to evolve its identity. It opens a new digital space that connects sport, entertainment and contemporary culture, while carrying the character and imagination of Lake Como into a different world.

This season, it extends beyond the pitch and into the everyday with a new capsule collection celebrating the spirit of unity that defines both team and city.

The range includes t-shirts from €50 and hoodies from the €90s, designed for those who carry Como’s pride wherever they go. Coinciding with the release of this year’s team photo, the collection captures the same message that runs through the club: different origins, one shared identity.

Available online and in-store now.

Luigi Fera lives here with his family and speaks of the castle as one speaks of a relative. Built in the twelfth century on Roman ruins it has seen centuries of war, peace and transformation. Two towers remain from its defensive years and from their height you can see the vineyards that have always tied the castle to the land.

When the Renaissance arrived the fortress changed character. Within the old walls rose Villa Orlando, a house made for beauty and for living rather than defence. Arches open to the garden Doric columns line the portico and the rooms inside bloom with frescoes of myth and light. The Salone d’Onore still shows painted ceilings and delicate stucco work that have survived five hundred years. Walking through you can imagine the echo of music or the sound of visitors arriving from Brescia or Milan to see the new art of living that the age had promised.

Outside the gardens tell their own story. The Italian garden speaks of geometry and order while the later English garden loosens the design and lets nature wander. Ancient trees stand like sentinels cedars and ginkgo and a vast Sophora japonica whose branches have watched two centuries of harvests and family gatherings. A small nineteenth century grotto hides among them built for reflection and romance.

Beneath the villa lie cellars cut into the hill their vaulted ceilings cool through every season. They once stored supplies for long winters and now hold rows of bottles resting in the quiet air. The same underground rooms that kept the fortress alive now shape the wines that carry its name.

The Fera family has been making wine here for generations among the oldest producers in Franciacorta. Luigi explains that the secret lies in the soil and the light. The ground was formed by glaciers thousands of years ago leaving stones that let the vines breathe. The hills create a gentle microclimate perfect for grapes that will become the region’s famous sparkling wine.

Visitors can feel this continuity at once. A short drive from Lake Como the castle opens its gates to tours that move from the medieval towers to the frescoed halls and down to the cellars. In each room history remains tangible not as display but as daily life. The air smells of stone and wood and something warm from the vines outside.

Castello di Bornato is remarkable not for grandeur but for endurance. Its medieval walls still stand, its Renaissance villa still welcomes guests, its gardens still follow the seasons and its cellars still age wine. The family who live here are not caretakers of a monument but participants in a long story that began with Roman stones and continues with each harvest.

The landscape of Franciacorta reflects the same balance between past and present. The name itself recalls the Franks who once settled these hills and the region has been known for its vineyards since the Middle Ages. The circular design of the castle’s vines lets every plant face the sun and wind, a quiet example of how tradition and invention meet in this corner of Lombardy.

Luigi Fera often says that the castle is a house before it is a monument and that its true strength is in the way it holds memory without freezing it. The children play where soldiers once stood guard, the family dinners take place where nobles once held court and in the cellars below bottles wait for the moment they will be opened and shared.

For travellers from Como or anyone drawn to Italy’s quiet corners Castello di Bornato offers a glimpse of history still alive. To see more of this story, its rooms, its gardens and the people who keep it breathing watch the full film on Como TV and step inside the living legacy of Franciacorta.

Inside visitors will find a wide range of collections including jerseys which can be customised on site with a name and number press, lifestyle collections from Como 1907, Adidas and Rhuigi Villaseñor, the Football on the Lake lines and a selection of fan memorabilia.

The Bellagio location is open daily from 10:00 to 19:00 and is currently the only Como 1907 brick and mortar shop outside of the city of Como. The store is a Tessabit property making it part of the area’s renowned retail offering and a must visit for anyone exploring the lake.

Lucas Da Cunha and Maxence Caqueret arrive as curious guests armed with pruning shears instead of football boots. Under Gigi’s watchful eye they pick bunches of Cabernet and Pinot Noir, learning that one plant more or less means one bottle. There are no chemicals here, no tricks, only hard work and patience which makes the players laugh in recognition of effort that feels familiar if not the same as their own.

The highlight comes in the cellar where the footballers are invited to crush grapes with their feet. What begins in hesitation soon turns into noisy fun as juice runs across the stone floor. DaCunha even admits he could happily do it all day.

Along the way there are reflections on football too. They speak of the difference between Italy and France, the structure, the tactics and the loyalty of Como’s fans who have stood by the team through difficult times. Both make clear they want to give everything for the shirt for the city and for the people who support them.

What strikes Cristina is how down to earth they are. Famous yes but unpretentious and ready to get their hands dirty. For her they are an example of how sport and life can meet on common ground.

The episode ends with a promise that in two years the wine they helped make will be opened together. 

Until then Discover Como offers a warm glimpse of what happens when football meets tradition on the hillsides of Lake Como.You can watch this and other episodes of Discover Como at tv.comofootball.com.

Walk to the north side of the Duomo and you come to the Porta della Rana, finished in 1507 by the Rodari brothers. The marble rises with saints and angels and vines, even mythological scenes that slip in from Ovid. Among this swirl of devotion and drama is a small detail. A frog clinging to the stone on the left jamb. Its head was destroyed in 1912 by an act of vandalism. The body is still there, polished by the hands of generations who wanted to test if the story was real.

The mystery has produced endless theories. One version insists the frog marks the high water of a flood long ago, a warning carved in marble. Another swears it is a symbol of rebirth, because frogs transform from water to land. A more practical tale says treasure was once buried near the portal and excavations in 1852 proved something was hidden there. None of it has ever been confirmed. All of it is repeated with a smile. That is the joy of the frog. It keeps Como talking.

The city needed its humour and its solidarity this autumn when the lake rose again. Rain forced the water into the centre. Cafés and shops were flooded. Families faced days of work to put homes back in order. The supporters of the Curva showed what community looks like. They were supposed to be at a Coppa Italia tie with Sassuolo. Instead they took up shovels and pumps to help neighbours. They still bought tickets because Como had pledged all proceeds to flood relief. Sassuolo added its own contribution. Football gave way to something more important and no one forgot who turned out when it mattered.

So the frog feels oddly at home in the story of today. A detail carved centuries ago that has survived vandals and storms. A reminder of water’s power over the city. And a witness to the way Como endures with patience, pride and sometimes a touch of mischief. Stand before the Porta della Rana, stretch your hand up to the polished stone, and remember that a small creature can carry a city’s memory. The bells ring over the square, the lake glitters nearby, and the frog waits quietly for the next chapter.

Visitor’s Note

How to Find the Frog
North side of Como Cathedral, Porta della Rana. Look at the left jamb and squint upwards.

When to Go
Early morning before the tourist groups arrive, or at dusk when the bells start and the square glows.

Other Stops Nearby
Piazza San Fedele for coffee. The lakefront for a walk.

First run in 1949 the Centomiglia has become part of the rhythm of Como. The course has changed over time but the essence is the same. Boats built for endurance and speed circle the lake before crowds that gather on terraces and promenades. It is both competition and ritual repeated each autumn with the same anticipation.

The appeal lies as much in the setting as in the race. Villas descend towards the water and mountains close in behind them. Boats tear past in bursts of spray and light while engines echo between the slopes. From a ferry in mid lake or a bench in Cernobbio the effect is the same. It feels immediate and unfiltered.

Some of the sport’s greatest names have competed here and records set on this course remain unbeaten. The boats are part of the theatre too. Some are cutting edge carbon machines, others are polished wooden racers that recall another age. All carry the skill of Italian boatyards where design and performance are treated with equal care.

The build up is just as absorbing as the race. Docks turn into workshops where mechanics tune engines and crews prepare hulls. Visitors are free to watch and wander and the atmosphere is open and welcoming.

The lake itself shapes the character of the event. In Como the race feels like a festival with music in the piazzas and people lining the waterfront. In smaller villages it is fleeting. Boats appear with sudden force and disappear just as quickly leaving behind only ripples. Both ways of seeing it have their own appeal.

For travellers the Centomiglia is a chance to see Lake Como in a different mood. After the finish you might dine in the old streets of Como on risotto with perch or slip into the quiet lanes of Torno or Blevio. The intensity of the race gives way to calm but the memory stays with the landscape.

The Centomiglia del Lario lasts because it has never been only about winning. It is a meeting of tradition and progress, a celebration of craft and community. Each autumn it shows that even on one of the world’s most serene lakes speed and elegance can share the same stage.

There is a place just a few minutes from Como where time seems to have stood still. Castello di Casiglio, a residence that first rose in the 14th century, stands among the hills of Erba surrounded by a park of centuries old trees. Once a medieval outpost and later the property of noble families, it is today an elegant Relais where history and comfort meet.

Its stones have witnessed centuries of change. Built around the year 900 as a defensive outpost, the castle was expanded through the Middle Ages and became home to families such as the Parravicini before falling into decline. A major restoration in the 1980s returned it to splendour but the latest chapter is perhaps its most ambitious.

Luca Pettine and Federica Cattaneo have led the relaunch with a clear vision. “Our project was born from the desire to preserve the historical legacy and at the same time make it current,” they say. “The greatest challenge was to respect the authentic identity of the castle, with its stones and beams and irregular spaces, while introducing a design that was both elegant and functional.”

The result is a place where three distinct strands coexist in harmony. The hotel welcomes guests with rooms that carry the imprint of time, vaulted ceilings, terracotta floors, frescoes that reappear from under centuries of dust, yet each room feels new, thanks to clean lines and designer furnishings that never overwhelm. “Every space preserves original features but is reinterpreted with care,” says Pettine. “No two rooms are alike. A guest who returns can stay somewhere different and always be surprised.”

Alongside the hotel lies LUNEA Spa and Wellness Club, six hundred square metres of water and ritual designed for stillness. Its heated pool flows from inside to out, blurring boundaries like the building itself. Treatments are tailored, sensory paths personalised, but the principle is constant: this is a haven for anyone looking to slow down and reconnect.

The third soul of the castle beats in Ristorante LèCru. Here chef Michele Pedrazzini ties together tradition and invention. The seasons dictate his menus, with produce sourced from the surrounding territory. In the great halls or on the newly restored terrace, dishes appear like stories on a plate, each one matched with a bottle from a cellar that houses more than seven hundred Italian and international labels.

“Our philosophy is to create balance,” Cattaneo explains. “The hotel, the spa, the restaurant and the wine cellar all complement each other. Together they go beyond simple hospitality. They create a stay that engages all the senses.”

Castello di Casiglio is also opening itself to the community. The castle hosted the end of year aperitif of Como 1907, a moment that felt symbolic. “It was an honour to welcome such an important event,” says Pettine. “For us hospitality means not only receiving guests but being part of the cultural and sporting life of the region.” That philosophy extends to being part of the COMO4COMO initiative, which supports the local economy by selling Como 1907 products and donating a quarter of the profits to Fondazione Como.

Looking ahead, the ambition is to continue layering experiences without disturbing the essence of the place. “We are working on new proposals that bring together hospitality and wellbeing,” Cattaneo says. “Packages that combine a stay here with exclusive experiences, themed events that celebrate the heritage of the territory and collaborations to expand our wellness and outdoor offer. Our mission remains the same. To make every stay unforgettable.”

Among the centuries-old branches, along the stone paths and within the hush of its walls, the castle holds itself between dream and reality. A fairytale retreat and an intimate perspective on Lake Como, Castello di Casiglio is above all an invitation to take your time.