In Milan, it is not just football. These are identity, memory and sacred architecture. The Giuseppe Meazza stadium, better known as San Siro, is not a simple enclosure: it is a Calcio cathedral, a theater of collective passions that has seen Rivera, Baresi, Ronaldo, Maldini, Zanetti and generations of Tifosi in a trance. However, this 20th century monument is today at the heart of a politico-financial soap opera with the appearance of an Italian tragedy. Two rival clubs – Milan and Inter – united in the need for a more profitable future, oppose a municipality torn between cultural heritage and imperative of modernization. Behind the romantic facade, the San Siro file mixes heritage issues, institutional showdown, colossal real estate interests, and fear of a symbolic exodus which would fracture the heart of Milanese football.
Since 2019, AC Milan and Inter Milan have expressed their wish to replace San Siro – a historic stadium of 80,000 places – with a more modern enclosure, estimated at around 1.2 billion euros (€ 600 million) for a multifunctional complex integrating shopping center, hotels, event activities … but exorbitant costs, club debt (€ 324 Inter) and Italian administrative slowness quickly undermined the idea of a renovation. According to CALCIO E FINANZAthe initial project for rehabilitation of the stadium had been abandoned after an analysis concluded that it was economically unrealistic – the renovation would make San Siro Quasi unrecognizable and would seriously limit its commercial potential. In response, the clubs have returned to the idea of a new common stadium, with a proposal to purchase annexed municipal land, a project currently on appeal of the sale leading to a judicial inquiry of the Milan prosecutor on a possible artificial discount of the land sold at around € 400/m².
Almost 6 years of battle!
According to Calcio e Finanza, the two clubs are not on an equal footing: AC Milan is financially more solid – without a clear debt and already owner of land in San Donato ready to welcome its stadium – which gives it a stronger negotiation power. Inter, on the other hand, is heavily indebted (about € 900 million) and depends on the “Project Financing” and a land under exclusivity to Rozzano, conditioned on a feasibility offer before April 2024. The municipality, through the mayor Sala, watches with distrust the financial guarantees provided, imposing the clubs to account within a very short time (90 days in April) to the stagnation of the file and the threat of a departure outside the city for one or the two clubs. The popular reception in Milan is mainly hostile to the demolition of the emblematic enclosure – 59 % of the population, with 64 % among the Tifosi Rossoneri, oppose its destruction – strengthening political oppositions to the Scrapp project.
The municipality of Milan, under the leadership of the mayor Giuseppe Sala, is in a delicate position: preserving a classified historic monument – which hinders any major modification of the second level from 2025 – while not being able to lose the income related to the clubs (around € 8 million in annual rents plus € 2 million in maintenance for the city). Sala announced an appeal against the decision of the Ministry of Culture prohibiting the work, deemed absurd and damaging for the city. In addition, the opening of a legal file (model 45, without a criminal investigation for the moment) aims to analyze whether the sale of the enclosure and the land has caused damage to public finances, in particular because of the low valuation charged according to a report by M – I Stadio, a company linked to the clubs themselves. Consequently, the dossier becomes a cocktail of symbols (San Siro as her heritage vs modernity), financial interests, political rivalries, and popular pressure. The debate is now in public, without clear deadline, and could last years with a new operational stadium only around 2031–2035 if the project finally succeeds.
An urgent file for Euro 2032
San Siro could be dismissed from the candidacy of Italy to accommodate Euro 2032, because it does not meet the required standards and all the renovations would be too late or costly. A meeting at the Palazzo Marino with Figc, UEFA, the Milanese clubs and the town hall underlined the urgency: to last in the race, it would be necessary to demolish a large part of the enclosure (everything except the second ring), which could not start until 2030. The estimated cost of reconstruction is around 197 M €, with a final offer expected by October 2026 to validate the project. The Tar of Lombardy rejected an appeal contesting the future Vincolo Patrimonial, confirming that the deadline is still on November 10, 2025 (70 years since the inauguration of the second ring), paving the way for the sale of the enclosure by clubs by the end of July 2025.
In addition, the town hall is currently discussing an initial € 197 million discount (field value + stadium), taking into account the depollution and demolition costs. The final agreement could be around € 160 million net. The mayor Giuseppe Sala maintains his commitment: the sale must be approved by the municipal council, but the assembly is suspended until September, reconciling its desire to move forward and the reservations of the PD on costs and guarantees. Approval via Giunta is also underway. Several elected officials have expressed their opposition, and any favorable decision will have to bring together an acceptable majority, politically winding. The project remains tense: the clubs must conclude before the fall of the Vincolo (10/11/2025), the town hall must maintain the budgetary and political balance, while the UEFA deadlines weigh heavily. On the ground, we advance methodically, but each stage remains conditioned on legal and political validation.
