MILAN AND CHINESE INVESTOR
Former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi has finally
completed his troubled, protracted sale of AC Milan to a Chinese-led consortium
and thanked the fans after ending his 31-year stint as owner.
Berlusconi said he left the club with 'pain and emotion' but
said he needed to sell in order for the club to compete at the highest level.
Milan enjoyed their most successful years under Berlusconi
after he took over in February 1986, including winning eight league titles and
five European Cups and Champions Leagues.
WHO IS BEHIND THE AC
MILAN TAKEOVER?
The tortuously long winded deal began last summer. It was
thought a consortium fronted by Chinese businessman Yonghong Li would buy the
club, but their pursuit failed.
Instead, the club has been taken over by Rossoneri
Sport Investment Lux - previously known as Sino-Europe Sports, with promises of
returning AC Milan to their former greatness.
Since winning the Scudetto in 2011, Milan have slipped into
mid-table, finishing eighth, 10th and seventh in the last three seasons.
Previous owner Silvio Berlusconi, who was in charge for over
30 years, had limited his monetary input as he looked to sell. Now he has done
so, a newly moneyed Milan - and similarly rich rivals Inter - could next season
finally challenge Juventus' monopoly.
In a statement on the club website he said: 'I leave today,
after more than 30 years, ownership and Chairman of AC Milan.
'I do so with pain and emotion, but with the knowledge that
the modern game, to compete at the highest European and world levels, needs
investment and resources that a single family is no longer able to support.
'I will never forget the emotions that Milan has been able
to give and give to all of us. I will never forget all the people thanks to
whom I had the privilege of presiding over the club that has won so much.'
Berlusconi said it would be impossible to name all the
individual players and coaches he wished to thank, but instead offered them all
'a big group hug'.
He said: 'But above all, my thanks from the bottom of
my heart goes out to our fans. To the millions of fans who filled stadiums
around the world to shout Forza Milan, for many others, many more still, that
being physically far, there have been close with sympathy and enthusiasm.
'Without them, our winning Milan would not exist and could
not exist. With them, we won everything he could win. I have in my mind and
heart a thousand times when the testimonies of affection of our supporters have
been extraordinary and moving.'
The deal, said to be worth £627.5million, was finalised on
Thursday and tightens China's grip on the game in Italy.
The deal, the biggest Chinese investment in a European club,
follows retail giant Suning Commerce Group's purchase of Milan's rival Inter
last year. A Chinese firm also owns the media rights to Serie A.
In a statement published on the AC Milan website,
Berlusconi's family holding Fininvest said it had sold its entire 99.93 percent
stake in the club to Luxembourg-based Rossoneri Sport Investment Lux.
The deal had been provisionally agreed on August 5, but
persistent problems meant that the takeover was not completed officially for
another eight months.
The new owners have also agreed to take on Milan's debts,
which the statement said are worth around £186.5million. The statement also
confirmed the new board positions will be confirmed on Friday.
Milan are currently sixth in Serie A, 10 points off the Champions
League qualification places with seven games to play.
The 18-time Scudetto winners and seven time European
champions have fallen on comparatively hard times in recent seasons as
Berlusconi limited his investment in the team - they have not qualified for
European football in the last three seasons and last won the league in 2011.
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