In the last 10 years, the AC Milan have fallen off the radar of Europe’s elite but this season the club is starting to bounce back. With three games to go, The Rossoneri are top of the Serie A standings with 77 points, two points ahead of chasing Inter. AC Milan have not won the league since 2011.
Behind the scenes the club is in the process of their fourth change of ownership in the last five years, current American owners Elliot Management, are looking to sell the San Siro club. Milan’s valuation is around $1.26 billion, according to ESPN.
The leading candidate to buy AC Milan was Investcorp a Bahrain-based fund. It has been said that Investcorp had offered €1.18 billion, a considerable figure, but one that could increase if the club eventually wins Serie A. Also, according to Gazzetta dello Sport, the new ownership group would give Paolo Maldini and company €300 million to begin building a new squad.
However, Investcorp’s exclusivity period has expired, and Elliot Management has not responded. Now, a new investor group is seeking to buy AC Milan. The owners of which elite club want to buy the Italian club?
RedBird Capital seeks to buy Ac Milan
RedBird Capital are the minor owners of Liverpool. Although an exact figure has not been disclosed, it would be in line with Investcorp’s figure of over €1 billion. Red Bird is run by former Goldman Sachs executive Gerry Cardinale.
RedBird Capital already possesses a sports portfolio
RedBird has become one of the world’s most prolific investors in elite sports and associated technology companies, such as India’s Dream Sports, which organizes fantasy cricket competitions for millions of Indians. Cardinale’s firm bought Ligue 1 club, Toulouse, in the summer of 2020 and own 15% of the Indian Premier League’s Rajasthan Royals. They claim to have more than $5bn worth of assets under their management.
Last year, RedBird bought a stake of just over 10% in Fenway Sports Group (FSG), Liverpool’s owner for the last decade, for a reported $750m. FSG also owns the Boston Red Sox baseball team and New England Sports Network.
