From Scudetto to "Go Home": RedBird's AC Milan and the €1.2 Billion Blind Spot in Private Equity Football Ownership

Private Equity (PE) firms aim to generate high returns through value creation: acquire, improve, sell. However, when the business acquired is a European football club with a global fanbase numbering in the millions, certain mechanisms that work in general PE ventures do not always transfer. This article explores the anatomy of RedBird Capital Partner's (RedBird) acquisition of A.C. Milan in 2022 and the ongoing difficulties they face in reconciling organisational objectives with the distinctive demands of football club ownership.

The Anatomy of a PE Football Acquisition

The Yonghong Li Saga

In April 2017, hedge fund Elliott Investment Management L.P. (Elliott) provided a loan of approximately €303 million to Chinese investor Yonghong Li to complete his €740 million acquisition of AC Milan from Silvio Berlusconi. In July 2018, Mr Li defaulted on a €32 million instalment, and Elliott enforced their security interest, assuming 99.93% ownership.[1]

Elliot’s Playbook: Restructure, Revenue, Rapturise

Elliott absorbed approximately €504 million in operating losses across a four-year restructuring, injecting €700 million in total capital.[2] They professionalised the commercial operation, brought in seasoned football executives, reduced the wage-to-revenue ratio to a competitive 52%, and wiped clean all debt.[3] By 2022, Milan was the only club among Italy's top six already compliant with UEFA's incoming financial sustainability regulations.[4] Their 2021/22 Scudetto (Italian title) was the culmination of that turnaround. Elliott achieved an estimated 2.5x gross multiple on invested capital with an internal rate of return of approximately 33%, which was generated through genuine operational improvement, not financial extraction.[5]

Most significantly, Elliott prioritised stewardship by hiring club legend Paolo Maldini as Technical Director. A 25-year one-club player whose father Cesare was also a club legend, Paolo is the embodiment of Milanismo (total devotion to the club’s identity). His appointment was a statement that institutional identity mattered. The fan’s were ecstatic. Under Maldini, the squad was rebuilt around young talent, with many signings joining out of personal respect for Maldini himself.

Elliott proved that private equity and stewardship can coexist. What followed proved it doesn't happen by default.

The RedBird Deal Structure

The August 2022 sale was valued at €1.2 billion, structured as follows:

1. RedBird contributed approximately €681 million in equity, roughly half of which was mezzanine (a combination of debt and equity funding) or preferred equity provided by Ares Management.

2. The remaining €550 million was a vendor loan from Elliott at approximately 7% annual interest, generating roughly €38.5 million per year.

3. Elliott retained board representation through Gordon Singer, with former Elliott employees (CEO Furlani, CFO Cocirio) remaining in executive positions.

4. In December 2024, RedBird partially refinanced, injecting €170 million and extending the loan maturity to July 2028.[6]

The Distinctive Nature of Football Club Ownership

For many, football clubs are not just businesses. They carry cultural, emotional, and communal significance that corporate assets necessarily do not. The asset is packaged with supporters, heritage, and sporting integrity; none of which translates on a balance sheet.

Within 12 months of RedBird’s acquisition, Maldini was sacked for publicly stating the club needed greater investment to remain competitive, which was a fair assessment from the club legend.[7]

Maldini’s sacking created a snowball effect that demonstrated stewardship was a box-ticking exercise for RedBird rather than an internalised priority:

1. Boyhood fan and future captain Sandro Tonali was sold weeks later; the proceeds funded Reijnders (a good signing), who RedBird allowed to leave to Manchester City for approximately €55 million; widely considered a bargain considering the hyper-inflated market.

2. Fan favourite Theo Hernandez was given an ultimatum; his farewell statement intentionally thanked Maldini and stated the club's direction no longer reflected the values that brought him there.

3. The San Siro stadium, inseparable from Milan’s identity, has a planned demolition for value creation, rather than a renovation to maintain the club’s identity.

4. The Curva Sud Ultras (organised group that shapes a club’s atmosphere, identity and influence) had choreographed themselves into giant letters spelling "Go Home" with chants of "Cardinale devi vendere, vattene!" (Cardinale you have to sell, go away”) throughout the season.

Zvonimir Boban, a club legend and former CFO under Elliott, called Maldini's sacking "shameful" and "unacceptable," adding that Maldini would never have let Tonali go.[8] Carlo Ancelotti famously stated that clubs prioritising business over sporting achievement are "destined to fail."[9] The criticism coalesced around a concept of 'De-Milanisation': the deliberate erosion of Milanismo by an ownership that views emotional belonging as an obstacle to control.[10]

Cardinale's Trust Plea

Days ago, Cardinale publicly asked for the benefit of the doubt, acknowledging he needs to prove he is a trustworthy steward. He described Milan fans as his "partners" and stressed that European football ownership is something "you have to take seriously” and “the human element and its unpredictability is what makes these things so precious."[11] But this comes after three years of decisions that systematically dismantled the trust Maldini built. Asking for trust after what has occurred, is asking for something that the ownership's own actions have made impossible to give.

RedBird's "Moneyball" American model: data-driven, cost-efficient recruitment, does not provide the same safety net in Europe as it does in the United States. An eighth-place finish last season diminished commercial value, and a fanbase whose loyalty to the club will always outweigh any loyalty to the ownership.

Looking Forward

The simple answer: look to Elliott and know your market.

In the UK, the Football Governance Act 2025 established an Independent Football Regulator with powers over financial sustainability, ownership suitability, fan engagement, and heritage protection.[12] The Football Supporters' Association (FSA) legislatively defined "stewardship" as owners being custodians on behalf of fans.[13] 

For European nations, this can be framed as models that would help PE owners align incentives with institutional health by:

1. Enhanced ownership suitability tests: assess whether an owner's business model, fund lifecycle, and exit horizon are compatible with long-term stewardship; protecting both the club and the owner from structural mistakes.

2. Mandatory fan engagement: require consultation on strategic decisions. RedBird's biggest failures all involved decisions made without engaging the community most affected.

3. Stewardship obligations: a positive duty to preserve institutional identity, enforceable by a regulator; a requirement to demonstrate compatibility with long-term cultural and sporting health.

4. Fund lifecycle disclosure: require PE owners to disclose their investment horizon and exit strategy at acquisition, so regulators and fans understand the ownership timeline from the outset.

For Australian practitioners advising on PE investment, the Milan case study is instructive. With Silver Lake already holding a significant stake in the A-League and private equity circling the AFL, NRL, and Cricket Australia, the tension between fund-driven ownership models and community-rooted sporting institutions will inevitably arise domestically.[14] Australia currently has no equivalent to the UK's Football Governance Act and the Milan saga demonstrates why proactive regulatory frameworks are preferable to reactive ones.

Conclusion

Cardinale has described Milan fans as his "partners" and the club as a "multi-billion-dollar live event entertainment business." Both statements are true. The problem is that Cardinale's words are a rusted mirror; present, but incapable of reflecting surety, corroded by RedBird's actions. The Milan saga is the most recent instructive example of what happens when institutional capital does not respect the distinctiveness of the asset it is acquiring. Bespoke stewardship obligations are not constraints on investment; they are guardrails that prevent the culturally destructive decisions that ultimately destroy a club's value amongst its fanbases.

Financial figures cited in this article are based on publicly reported estimates and do not constitute verified financial disclosures. This article is intended as general commentary only and does not constitute legal or financial advice. Readers should seek independent professional advice in relation to their specific circumstances.

[1] 'Prosecutors Ask to Drop Case against AC Milan's Chinese Former Owner', Reuters (online, 12 June 2024) https://www.reuters.com/sports/soccer/soccer-prosecutors-ask-drop-case-against-ac-milans-chinese-former-owner-2024-06-12/.

[2] 'The Incredible Financial Reengineering of AC Milan: From the Heart-Warming Rescue of Elliott to the Inspiring Journey of RedBird's Platform', Goal.com (online, 10 March 2026) (‘Financial Reengineering’).  https://www.goal.com/en/news/the-incredible-financial-reengineering-of-ac-milan-from-the-heart-warming-rescue-of-elliott-to-the-inspiring-journey-of-redbird-s-platform/blt573e7c009f287afa.

[3] Ibid.

[4] Ibid.

[5] Ibid.

[6] Ibid.

[7] James Horncastle, 'AC Milan, Maldini and Respect', The Athletic (online, 1 December 2023) https://www.nytimes.com/athletic/5104216/2023/12/01/ac-milan-maldini-respect/.

[8] 'Boban: Avevo preso Olmo e Szoboszlai, mi dissero di no. Cacciata di Maldini vergognosa', MilanNews.it (online) https://www.milannews.it/primo-piano/boban-avevo-preso-olmo-e-szoboszlai-mi-dissero-di-no-cacciata-di-maldini-vergognosa-576696. (‘Milanisimo’).

[9] Financial Reengineering.

[10] 'Cardinale Says His Partners in Milan "Are the Fans" and Says "You Have to Take It Seriously"', SempreMilan (online, 15 May 2024) https://sempremilan.com/cardinale-partners-milan-fans-seriously.

[11] 'Football Governance Act Becomes Law in Historic Moment for English Football', GOV.UK (online, 21 July 2025) https://www.gov.uk/government/news/football-governance-act-becomes-law-in-historic-moment-for-english-football.

[12] Ibid.

[13] 

[14] Damien Vickovich and James Dainton, 'The Good, the Bad, and the Rugby: The Legal and Commercial Challenges of Private Equity Investment in Sport in Australia and New Zealand', Norton Rose Fulbright — Inside Sports Law (online, August 2022) https://www.nortonrosefulbright.com/en/inside-sports-law/blog/2022/08/the-good-the-bad-and-the-rugby.

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ABOUT THE AUTHOR

Wahib Ansari is a commercially minded solicitor with experience across corporate and commercial advisory, regulatory matters, and dispute-related work. He is committed to delivering clear, practical legal guidance that supports clients in managing risk and achieving business-critical outcomes.

Wahib brings a structured and detail-focused approach to his work, with an emphasis on clear drafting, commercially informed analysis, and effective execution. His background across both private practice and regulatory environments enables him to identify key issues early and provide advice that is strategic, pragmatic, and aligned with client objectives.