Features

Financial masterplan laid out for new Milan stadium

AC Milan and Inter Milan are projecting non-matchday revenues of €124m (£109.1m/$137.1m) per year from the Italian Serie A football clubs’ proposed new stadium and entertainment district, adding that they are expecting to gain pure financial benefit from the venture after its 32nd year of operation.

The two city rivals are aiming to leave their historic San Siro home and move into a new stadium that will be located adjacent to the existing facility. In July, Milan and Inter revealed their vision for a new stadium that will seek to provide the city with a “landmark of world class excellence”.

The clubs confirmed their plans having filed with the Municipality of Milan a Technical and Economic Feasibility Study for a new 60,000-seat stadium and the development of a multi-functional district which they said would be privately financed. Design proposals for the stadium are expected to be presented next week, with Populous said to be favourite to land the contract having worked with the two clubs for months in an advisory capacity.

Italian newspaper Corriere della Sera has now outlined the financial masterplan behind the project, based on an economic and financial analysis document that Milan and Inter presented to the Municipality. The venture has been given a price tag of €1.23bn, €564m of which would be dedicated to the stadium and €472m for the wider development of the multi-functional district.

Milan and Inter have reportedly proposed to cover the cost by taking out a loan that will account for 90% of the budget, with a duration of 30 years and an interest rate of 5% per annum. The two clubs have repeatedly stressed that redeveloping the San Siro is not a viable business option and their report to the Municipality again highlights the importance of the entertainment district in the masterplan.

The report states: “The costs of the stadium highlight the economic and financial unsustainability, along with the inefficiency, of the sports facility alone.”

In terms of revenue generation, the clubs believe that the stadium will be able to generate €69m per year, excluding matchday income, with €55m coming from the multi-functional district. Stadium naming rights have been valued at €13.8m per year, with the stadium museum also highlighted as a key source of revenue.

The report states: “According to some benchmarks with developments of the same type, it is believed that about a million visitors a year will visit the stadium and the museum, generating total annual revenues of €16m.”

The San Siro first opened in 1926 and has undergone several renovations, most notably for Italy’s staging of the 1990 FIFA World Cup. AC Milan has called the stadium home since it opened, while Inter started using the San Siro in 1947.

Image: Inter Milan