FSG part owners RedBird Capital to close on £1.1bn AC Milan deal imminently

RedBird Capital Partners, the US private equity firm that holds an 11 per cent stake in Liverpool owners Fenway Sports Group, are expected to close on their deal to acquire Italian giants AC Milan in the coming weeks.

The New York-based firm, founded by managing partner Gerry Cardinale, reached an agreement to acquire the Serie A champions from current owners Elliott Management back in June in a deal worth €1.3bn (£1.1bn). Contracts were signed and full control was set to begin from September, with Elliott Management retaining a minority shareholding as part of the deal.

According to Italian newspaper Gazzetta dello Sport, the deal could close even sooner, potentially by the end of this month, with Cardinale likely to head to Milan for the closing and potentially in the stands at the San Siro as owner in time for the derby clash with Inter Milan on September 3.

The deal to acquire AC Milan is the biggest sporting acquisition to date for RedBird, a fund that manages over £6bn in assets globally. RedBird bought French side Toulouse in the summer of 2020, returning them to the top tier this summer with former Liverpool sporting director Damien Comolli overseeing the revolution. They also took a stake in Indian Premier League cricket side Rajasthan Royals as well as purchasing the rights to the XFL in the US, a competition designed fill the void in the NFL off-season.

While previous attempts to launch the XFL have been flawed, the current deal has been done alongside Hollywood actor Dwayne Johnson and his ex-wife Dany Garcia, with the inaugural season set for 2023 and having already attracted key broadcast partners in Disney.

In March 2021 RedBird closed on one of their biggest sporting investments, a $750m deal with Liverpool owners FSG for an 11 per cent stake in the business. That deal, described by Cardinale as being the only time he would be willing to be a 'junior partner', helped provide some capital for FSG to keep progressing with their ambitions despite the impact of the pandemic. Work pressed ahead with the Anfield Road development and FSG added another sports team to their portfolio in the form of the Pittsburgh Penguins in a $900m deal back in November.

"I am very much looking forward to ensuring that we embrace all of this (Milan) history and making sure that we have an equally impressive future," Cardinal told RedBird's YouTube channel in June after the agreement with Elliott was reached.

"I understand what this team means to the people of Milan, for the Milanistas, and for the people around the world.

"We at RedBird have had a tremendous longevity in sports with some of the best sports owners, teams, leagues and players in history. And so when I come here to Milan I come here very humbly, knowing full well what my role is. My role, RedBird's role, is to be a great steward for this club. I have a responsibility to the fans, we want to win and take it to another level.

"We will do everything we can to win with honour and integrity."

Given RedBird's minority stake in FSG and lack of presence at board level at Liverpool there are no issues from a UEFA perspective around a conflict of interest.

The AC Milan investment, the ECHO has been told, is something that doesn't effect RedBird's own plans for FSG, a partnership that could grow further in the future. They view their role with FSG as being there to aid the building of a business empire through insight, expertise and capital, but is is Milan where they will showcase their credentials as team owners, as they have done so with great success at Toulouse this past season.

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