AC Milan President Paolo Scaroni and Inter Milan President Beppe Marotta have both spoken out in favor of building a new stadium for their clubs, criticizing the current San Siro as outdated. The two executives shared their views at the Festival dello Sport event.
Scaroni, who has been Milan’s president for over six years, highlighted the club’s financial growth under his tenure: “When I joined, we were earning less than 180 million euros; now we’re earning more than 450 million. I raised the issue of economic sustainability for football teams at a time when we were still living in the world of Berlusconi and Moratti, with presidents pulling money out to maintain the club. Today, economic sustainability is a common concern.”
Regarding the stadium issue, Scaroni was blunt: “Six years ago, I said that San Siro needed to be rebuilt, that it’s old and obsolete. I wanted to tear it down and build a new one next to it. People told me, ‘You’re crazy, you want to tear down the La Scala of Football?’ And I replied, ‘What La Scala of Football? It’s an old structure.’ Wembley was torn down, and it was even more iconic than San Siro.”
Scaroni outlined two potential options: “Now, we’re carefully examining the original hypothesis of building a new stadium in the San Siro area, maintaining some elements of the old stadium but providing the city with a new one. I spoke with the Mayor about this just this morning. Then there’s the option of building a new stadium in San Donato Milanese, which is a possibility – we’ve already invested 40 million euros in that.”
Inter President Marotta echoed Scaroni’s sentiments: “Scaroni’s analysis is perfect. I too have witnessed this football evolution, having experienced both the patronage model and now true entrepreneurship. Today’s ownership is an important investment fund, which is a different type of ownership from patrons. Football is moving towards this model, and thankfully so.”
Marotta emphasized the importance of a modern stadium: “We need to work on this asset: it’s important for achieving sporting results and must also generate income. A modern stadium shouldn’t be a cathedral in the desert where you go to watch a match every 15 days, but a place frequented every day. Last year we earned 80 million euros in this situation; imagine what we could earn in a modern stadium.”
