Milan, the FIGC Prosecutor’s Office closes the investigation into the move from Elliott to RedBirdL the accusation was of a fictitious operation

The FIGC Prosecutor’s Office has closed the investigation opened against Milanfollowing the transmission of documents by the Milan Public Prosecutor’s Office on the transfer of ownership from Elliott to RedBird in the summer of 2022. This was reported by the agency Handle: “The federal prosecutor’s office of the Football Federation has just archived “at the state of the proceedings” the open file on the transfer of Milan from Elliott to Red Bird”. The facts refer to the investigation opened by the Milan Prosecutor’s Office last March, which was followed by searches of the Casa Milan headquarters and the registration of the current AC Milan CEO Giorgio Furlani and his predecessor Ivan Gazidis in the register of suspects. On charges of “having hindered the exercise of the functions of the supervisory authority for communications to the FIGC on the real owners of the company during Operation RedBird”.

The focus of the investigation was related to the sale of the majority stake in AC Milan from the Elliott fund to RedBird for 1.2 billion euros: the suspicion was of a “fictitious” financial operation, through which Elliott would have maintained operational control of the club through the vendor loan of around 600 million euros granted to RedBird owner Gerry Cardinale (which will expire by 31 December 2025) and the inclusion of several men linked to Elliott on the Rossoneri board of directors.

Dry and direct answers to the investigations had already arrived in unsuspecting times. The first was released by Milan itself: “Regarding the search that took place today in its headquarters, the AC Milan company is third and unrelated to the ongoing proceedings which concerns the acquisition of the same, completed in August 2022. The investigation, which also involves the legal representatives with signing power, Giorgio Furlani and Ivan Gazidis, current and previous CEO of the Club, hypothesizes incorrect communications to the competent authority of vigilance. The company is cooperating fully with the investigating authority”.

The Elliott fund was also quick to deny the accusations: “We note reports of investigations into the current and former CEO of Milan in relation to the allegation that the club ‘still belongs to Elliott, and that this has been hidden from the Football Federation’. This allegation is false. AC Milan was sold to RedBird on 31 August 2022. As of that date, Elliott no longer has any shareholding or control over AC Milan.”. Now, the filing brings the matter to a definitive close.