Billionaire US ambassador to Italy turns $450M superyacht into floating embassy

Tilman Fertitta, US ambassador to Italy, conducts 'coastal diplomacy' aboard his $450 million superyacht Boardwalk

The Houston Rockets owner and casino mogul boasts a net worth of $11.1 billion

He covers all costs out of pocket except security — but critics call it an excessive display of wealth

US Ambassador to Italy Tilman Fertitta (left) and his wife Lauren Ware (second from left) wave as they arrive in Venice, Italy, aboard the superyacht Boardwalk. [AP]

Tilman Fertitta, 69, the great-grandson of Sicilian immigrants and a man worth $11.1 billion, ranks among the wealthiest ambassadors the United States has ever sent abroad. Now serving as US ambassador to Italy, he has become the talk of Italian political circles with what observers are calling "yacht diplomacy."

According to the Washington Post on Sunday (local time), while relations between President Donald Trump and Italian Prime Minister Giorgia Meloni have grown strained, the Texas billionaire has been sailing his massive yacht Boardwalk through the Gulf of Naples, Venice and the southern port city of Bari, working the Italian political establishment along the way.

Fertitta is midway through a two-and-a-half-month "coastal diplomacy tour" aboard the Boardwalk, a vessel valued at $450 million. On its teak-wood decks, corporate CEOs and sports figures mingle with central government officials, regional governors and mayors.

The yacht is equipped with multiple bars, two helicopter landing pads, two swimming pools, four hot tubs, a scuba room, a spa and a gym. Fertitta covers all costs personally, with the exception of government-funded security.

Tilman Fertitta and his superyacht Boardwalk. [Washington Post]

Ranked 312th on the Forbes global wealth list, Fertitta can absorb such costs without difficulty. He owns the NBA's Houston Rockets and is the proprietor of Bubba Gump Shrimp and the Golden Nugget Hotels and Casinos chain. By deploying his vast personal fortune in service of diplomacy, he has emerged as a symbol of what some are calling the Trump-era approach to foreign affairs.

His ties to Trump stretch back more than 25 years. The relationship began in 1999 when Fertitta opened a Rainforest Cafe at Trump Plaza Hotel, and he has been an active supporter of Trump ever since.

Having long sought the Rome posting, Fertitta took up the ambassadorship in May last year. He presents his business network as a diplomatic asset, arguing that his ability to call top figures in politics, business and entertainment directly sets him apart from career diplomats.

Appointing wealthy individuals as US ambassadors is nothing new. In Western Europe in particular, there is a long tradition of affluent political donors taking on prominent ambassadorial posts and using their personal wealth to cover the considerable costs of official entertainment.

Even so, 90 percent of Trump's second-term ambassador nominees are political appointees rather than career diplomats — a notably higher share than in recent administrations. A string of billionaire envoys has followed, including Charles Kushner, the president's in-law; banker Warren Stephens; and hair-care entrepreneur Leandro Rizzuto Jr.

Among them, Fertitta stands out. Ahead of a yacht party in the southern Italian city of Bari, he said Italians "like an ambassador with 'presence.'" He added that he had been told locals interpret the gesture as a sign of respect — that "we think they're important enough that we come to their city on a big boat and invite them to our home."

Not everyone views his so-called "love boat diplomacy" favorably, however. Critics argue that the line between his enormous personal wealth and his official diplomatic duties has become dangerously blurred. Barbara Bodine, a former US ambassador to Yemen who studies diplomacy at Georgetown University, acknowledged that politically appointed ambassadors often spend personal money improving their official residences. She said the level of wealth on display here goes too far. "This is inappropriate," she said.

Fertitta's lavish lifestyle drew attention from the moment he arrived. After taking up his post in Rome last year, he spent $2 million of his own money renovating Villa Taverna, the official US ambassador's residence. While the work was underway, he spent three weeks living aboard a superyacht he previously owned, commuting by helicopter.

The Boardwalk arrived in Italy in May. Fertitta has estimated the coastal tour will cost him roughly $1 million out of pocket — a trip he framed as both a celebration of the United States' 250th anniversary and a way to sidestep additional renovation work at the Rome residence.

His aggressive diplomatic push comes against a backdrop of turbulence in the US-Italy relationship.

Italy has generally been more favorably disposed toward the United States than many of its European neighbors, but a public rift has recently opened between Trump and Meloni, once considered close allies. Relations soured after Meloni refused to back the war against Iran and criticized it as falling outside the bounds of international law.

Against that backdrop, Fertitta has been leveraging his personal connections and wealth to multiply his contacts within Italian political circles. He believes that bringing people aboard the yacht and building relationships in that relaxed setting genuinely helps strengthen ties between the two countries.

Yet even in Italy — the homeland of high-end luxury as embodied by Gucci and Versace — reactions to Fertitta's style of diplomacy are mixed. While Italian culture is relatively tolerant of displays of wealth, many in the country's upper class view American-style conspicuous consumption as excessive.

Some figures on the left have accepted invitations to sip champagne on Fertitta's yacht, while others have been sharply critical.

Angelo Bonelli, co-leader of the Green Left Alliance and a member of parliament, called for a parliamentary investigation and demanded that the government disclose the security costs — covering police, helicopters and vessels — incurred during Fertitta's tour. Bonelli estimated those costs at between 3 million and 4 million euros ($4.63 million) and said the display of wealth was "frankly disgusting." "This is not how things work in Europe — at least not here," he said.

mokiya@heraldcorp.com