The Devil’s Charm: Cardinal talks to potential investors. Pif, Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, at the center of the debate. This is why the club can attract capital
A wind of change, as in the old song, is blowing over Milan (and for some time there have been those who bet it will become a storm). The team will be on the field tonight for the Europa League but this eve is among the strangest of the year because the Milan fans talk about something else. Of the future of the club, above all. At the end of February, at the Business of Football Summit of the Financial Times, Gerry Cardinale spoke about the desire to evolve and to Calcio e Finanza he left a very clear thought: “There is a lot of capital in the Middle East interested in investing in sport. We are open to collaborating with potential partners who could join us either as sponsors or as partners in the construction of the new stadium, or as minority shareholders.” The meaning is clear, confirmed by the recent trips of the RedBird founder to the Persian Gulf. Cardinale is looking for investors ready to believe in him and in his fund’s initiatives. Milan is not the only potential recipient but in short, at this moment in the RedBird universe it is central.
contact with pif
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Pif, Saudi Arabia’s sovereign wealth fund, is certainly one of the natural interlocutors for a businessman looking for capital in the Middle East. Yesterday the Arab Public Investment Fund was at the center of discussions and assumptions, also and above all after Il Sole 24 Ore dedicated an article to its European interests and the possible investment in the RedBird vehicle that controls Milan. Cardinale certainly spoke with Pif representatives and in those meetings he discussed Milan. From here to considering the operation complete – and imagining a future of multi-million dollar expenses and technical revolutions for Milan – however, the road is long.
newcastle
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Pif in 2021 led a consortium that bought Newcastle, which quickly became a top English club. The doubt about a second operation with Milan is definitely legitimate, for regulatory and opportunity issues. The UEFA regulation on the Champions League – and in general on its competitions – prohibits in article 5 that the same owner controls more than one club registered in the same tournament (Milan and Newcastle were even in the same group). The article, complex enough, explains that the same person or the same legal entity cannot own the majority of two clubs or even just exercise a decisive influence on two companies.
a big doubt
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Very restrictive in form, less so in substance. In fact, UEFA gave the green light to the Red Bull group for the coexistence of Leipzig and Salzburg and, more recently, Gerry Cardinale himself resigned from the Toulouse board of directors to avoid problems of coexistence with Milan. UEFA made Toulouse’s entry into the Europa League conditional on a series of bans and everything continued peacefully. Rather, it is fair to ask whether it would make sense for Pif to own Newcastle and invest in another top club like Milan. The experiences of City Football Group (Man City, NY City, Melbourne City, Mumbai City, Torque, Troyes, Lommel, Girona, Shenzhen Peng City, Yokohama Marinos, Bahia and Palermo) and Qatar Sports Investments (PSG and Braga) are decidedly different .
GC’s papers
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In short, the list of potential first-tier investors is decidedly longer than the three letters of the Saudi fund and extends to at least the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain and Qatar. If Cardinale has a minority shareholder it is likely that he will come from one of these countries. The issue is trivially (…) economic and power-sharing but Milan can certainly attract investments. The history, the 7 Champions League and the prestige are the most immediate attraction. The millions of fans around the world invite investment. The 2022-23 budget, profitable for the first time since 2006, certifies that Milan is healthy and has the strength to grow. The stadium, a great priority, would add a fundamental asset: if in 18 months the program agreement for San Donato was concluded with a green light, Milan would acquire value. In this scenario, never forget that in the second part of 2025 RedBird will have to repay Elliott the loan (vendor loan) granted in 2022: approximately 665 million.
future at stake
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Question marks remain on the Italian context, certainly not ideal, but the recent history of Milan, Inter, Roma, Fiorentina, Atalanta, Genoa, Parma and beyond demonstrates that more than one foreign investor is aiming for the growth of Serie A. For Milan, therefore , (at least) two paths remain open: continuing with the current structure or supporting RedBird with a strategic partner, let’s say a shareholder. It’s not form, it’s substance: between one project and another, purchasing power, men and strategies can change. He can change the future of Milan.
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