Italian club AC Milan has been sold to a Chinese consortium for a reported sum of 740 million euros. The deal was completed on Thursday by former Italian Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi, who owned the club for the 31 years, AP reported.
Berlusconi’s holding company, Fininvest, released a statement announcing that it had completed the transfer of its 99.93 percent stake in Milan to Rossoneri Sport Luxembourg, formerly known as Sino-Europe Sports.
The deal also requires the investors to spend 350 million euros over three years on improvements.
“I’m leaving today, after more than 30 years, the title and job of Milan president,” Berlusconi said in a statement on Milan’s website. “I do it with pain and emotion, but with the knowledge that in modern soccer, in order to compete at the top European and world levels, you need investment and resources which one single family is not able to sustain.
“I will always be the first fan of Milan, the team that my father taught me to love as a child, the dream that we realized together. To the new owners I give my best and most heartfelt wishes that you achieve goals even more extraordinary than those achieved by us.”
During Berlusconi’s reign, Milan won eight league titles, one Italian Cup and seven Super Cups as well as five Champions League trophies and five UEFA Super Cups. Milan is currently placed sixth in Serie A.
Milan face Inter Milan in the Serie A derby on Saturday. Incidentally, Inter are also owned by a Chinese company.
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