August 31, 2022
The brief from today:
Redbird Capital completes AC Milan takeover
Shortly after AC Milan won the Serie A title last May, it was announced that Redbird Capital would be taking over ownership of the club from Elliott Advisors within the next few months. Elliott, a hedge fund based in New York City, had taken control of Milan in 2018 after then owner, Li Yonghong, failed to make payments on the €300 million loan Elliott had provided him with in his purchase of the club from Silvio Berlusconi. Following four years of austerity, and a strong effort to reduce the club’s debt, Elliott successfully returned Milan to a much healthier financial position. The recent on field success also helped enhance the value of the team, and when Elliott decided they would start listening to offers, it was Redbird that eventually agreed to pay the €1.2 billion valuation. The takeover was officially completed today, and Gerry Cardinale, Redbird Capital’s founder and managing partner, will be the face of the new ownership. In the press release today, however, it was also confirmed that the New York Yankees’ ownership group—Yankees Global Enterprises (YGE)—have agreed to a strategic partnership with Redbird, and will hold a minority stake in the team. Elliott will also retain a minority stake, as well as two board seats, after providing a €550 million vendor loan to Redbird for the sale. It is also expected that in the coming days Cardinale may formally announce other investors that contributed to the takeover, with some reports already stating the likes of: Main Street Advisors, Veritas Capital, and Kaiser Permanente all played a financial role. This deal makes Redbird Milan’s fourth different owner since 2017, and fans of the club will be hoping for more stability and success going forward.
Redbird Capital will now be taking over operations at Casa Milan: AC Milan’s headquarters
Morocco select their new coach
Roughly three weeks ago, Morocco made the decision to relieve national team coach, Vahid Halilhodzic of his duties. Despite securing qualification for the World Cup, the Bosnian coach’s fractious relationships with some key players eventually led to his dismissal. With just under three months until the World Cup commences, the Moroccan football association moved swiftly and have now found their replacement. Tasked with the job of leading the national team in Qatar will be France-born Moroccan: Walid Regragui. Following his playing career, which included representing Morocco at international level, Regragui turned to coaching with spells at FUS Rabat in Morocco and Al Duhail in Qatar. It was his most recent job at Wydad Casablanca that put him on the national team radar. In his one season at Wydad, Regragui led the team to victory in the African Champions League, as well as the domestic league. His first opportunity to work with the national team will be during the upcoming international break in September when Morocco will play friendlies against Chile and Paraguay. Following that, the next task will be the World Cup in November and December, where Morocco finds themselves in Group F against Canada, Belgium, and Croatia.
Walid Regragui unveiled as Morocco’s new coach today