THE ROSSONERI REVIVAL: MILAN’S COMEBACK ON AND OFF THE PITCH

By Giuseppe Forlano

There’s a new energy around AC Milan. You can feel it in the air, in the stadium, in the way players carry themselves. After a summer filled with doubts and whispers, the answers have finally arrived. Milan wins, fights when it must, and builds a future that now feels solid, ambitious, and real.

Since mid-September, the Rossoneri have found a rhythm that feels almost inevitable. It all began at San Siro against Bologna, on a night that smelled of old-school football. Luka Modrić, forty years old and still writing poetry with his feet, decided the match. He ran, he dictated, he shaped the tempo as if time had no power over him. His winning goal was more than a moment of brilliance. It was a message from a man who refuses to fade.

Then came Udine, and a three-nil victory that spoke of control rather than emotion. Milan owned the pitch from the first minute to the last. The team looked mature, well-drilled, and completely in sync with its coach. It was the kind of performance that tells you this group has grown together and learned how to win.

The following weekend brought Napoli to San Siro, and with it, something even more special. After weeks of silence and protest, the Curva Sud finally returned to song. The chants echoed again, the flags waved, and the old fire filled the stands. Milan’s two-to-one win felt like a homecoming. The team and its people had found each other again, united by the sound of their own heartbeat.

Turin was next. The Juventus game ended goalless, but it was anything but dull. Milan played with courage and order, pressing when it mattered, holding their ground when it didn’t. Christian Pulisic had the chance to break the balance from the penalty spot. The stadium held its breath and then watched the ball fly over the bar. For a second, silence took over. But rather than collapse, Milan tightened up and finished the match stronger. A missed penalty can crush a team, yet this one stood tall. That, more than the scoreline, said everything about where Milan is now.

Four matches, three victories and one draw, but above all a feeling of continuity. Every week adds another layer to a project that seems finally to have found its soul. And behind the work on the field, a different kind of success has emerged at Casa Milan.

For the first time in its long history, the club has posted three consecutive profitable seasons. The latest result, a net profit of around three million euros, may not sound huge, but it means everything. It proves that Milan has learned to grow sustainably and that passion and discipline can actually coexist.

Revenues reached an all-time record of 495 million euros, roughly ten percent higher than the previous year. The boost came from the higher matchday income, and smart player trading, including the sales of Tijjani Reijnders and Pierre Kalulu. But what truly stands out is the philosophy behind those numbers. RedBird, the American ownership group, keeps reinvesting every euro directly into the club. Nothing gets lost. Every gain becomes another brick in the foundation.

Over the past two seasons, more than 250 million euros have gone into strengthening the squad and building long-term structures. Among those projects is Milan Futuro, the club’s second team, created to develop young players. Even after relegation to Serie D, the project continues. Milan believes that experience and growth come through continuity, not shortcuts.

the new San Siro

And now the biggest dream of all begins to take shape. The City of Milan has approved the joint acquisition of San Siro and its surrounding area by Milan and Inter. It is a milestone that changes everything. Owning their home gives the clubs control over their destiny and allows them to design a future worthy of their history.

At the same time, the Rossoneri have not abandoned their plans in San Donato, where forty million euros have already been invested in redevelopment in collaboration with local authorities. Two cities, one vision, a single idea that football can still build communities and not just trophies.

While Modrić keeps enchanting, Pulisic keeps learning and the fans keep singing, Milan keeps building. The club is shaping not only a team but an entire ecosystem. It’s a culture of resilience and ambition, of knowing when to sprint and when to breathe. 

Serie A remains unforgiving, and the path will be long, but this Milan feels ready. There is balance now, there is belief, and above all there is identity. Emotion and logic finally walk hand in hand again.

When a club with Milan’s history finds that harmony, something ancient stirs beneath the surface. The Rossoneri wake up, and when they do, the whole of Italian football feels it.

25/26 Transfer Review: AC Milan

AC Milan has undergone a radical transformation this summer, a true revolution that reshaped almost three quarters of the squad. This was not a matter of small tweaks or marginal adjustments, but a deep reconstruction, the sign of a club that no longer wants to remain trapped in the disappointments of recent years. The management, now led by CEO Giorgio Furlani, new sporting director Igli Tare, and Gerry Cardinale (president and owner through RedBird Capital Partners) chose to make a bold statement: sell in order to rebuild, invest in order to relaunch.

Cardinale, an American entrepreneur of Italian descent, has built a long career in finance, first at Goldman Sachs and then through the founding of RedBird Capital. His takeover of Milan in 2022 represented not only a change of ownership, but above all a change of mentality. A man of sport in every sense, with investments in Major League Baseball (part ownership of the New York Yankees) and in the NFL (through On Location), Cardinale brought to Milan a modern, American-style vision: a privately owned stadium, financial sustainability, brand development and global growth. He is not a president who lives on nostalgia, but an investor who looks to the future and expects the club to become a fully-fledged international sports enterprise.

Against this backdrop came one of the most eventful transfer campaigns in recent memory. On the incoming side, the standout signings were Ardon Jashari, the Swiss midfielder bought from Club Brugge for more than 30 million euros, and Samuele Ricci, acquired from Torino as a medium to long-term investment. On the flanks, the big move was Pervis Estupiñán, taken from Brighton to replace Theo Hernández, while in defense Milan secured Koni De Winter from Genoa, considered one of Serie A’s most promising young center-backs. Alongside them came to the surprise of many, Luka Modrić: the former Ballon d’Or winner, joining on a free transfer. The move for the Croatian legend represents not only technical quality but also leadership and identity for a team in transition. From the Swiss league arrived Zachary Athekame of Young Boys, a young forward expected to grow into his role in a Milan shirt, and full-back Terracciano was added at zero cost. In total, seven signings for more than 100 million euros, plus bonuses.

If the arrivals tell the story of ambition, the departures reflect the need to rebuild. Key figures left, such as Tijjani Reijnders, sold to Manchester City for around 60 million euros, Theo Hernández, who moved to Al Hilal, and Malick Thiaw, transferred to Newcastle for 35 million euros. Altogether, fifteen players left Milanello, generating more than 150 million euros in revenue, plus bonuses and fixed buy-out clauses. These were not just technical choices, but part of a precise strategy: to build a younger, more sustainable team without sacrificing international credibility.

The summer of 2025 cannot therefore be read only in terms of net spend. It was an act of both courage and necessity. The failure to qualify for the Champions League had left a hole in the accounts, and major sales helped balance the books while still allowing for ambitious reinvestment. At the same time, the leadership wanted to send a message: this club will not live off regrets but intends to relaunch itself immediately.

Here is where history plays its part. Milan is not just any club; it is the team that has won seven Champions League titles, more than any other in Italy. This tradition cannot be ignored, but today it must be transformed into fuel for the future. If in the 1980s and 1990s Silvio Berlusconi’s Milan built a dynasty based on world-class players and innovative vision, the Milan of Cardinale and Furlani must now attempt a rebirth with different tools: financial sustainability, modern infrastructure, and a transfer strategy that balances present needs with long-term growth.

The most sensitive point today, however, is the relationship with the organized fan base. The Curva Sud has entered into open conflict with the club and with the new access rules: after the “Doppia Curva” investigation and the decisions taken by the Milanese clubs, many ultras were denied season ticket renewals; traditional banners have been banned in the Curva, and security checks have become much stricter, with severe limits on name changes and ticket transfers. The reaction has been fierce: protests, coordinated silences at San Siro, statements denouncing an “authoritarian regime,” and, in some cases, the choice not to enter the stadium at all. It is a short circuit that is shaping the atmosphere of the season’s opening matches.

The challenge awaiting Massimiliano Allegri, called to guide this renewed team, is anything but simple. He will need to blend experienced players like Modrić with youngsters waiting for confirmation, such as Jashari, Ricci and De Winter. He will need to manage the emotional weight of losing major stars without allowing their absence to become an excuse. And he will have to turn a squad full of new faces into a cohesive group, competitive in Serie A and in the Europa League.

The final judgment, as always, will come from the pitch. On paper, Milan may appear weaker in some areas and stronger in others. But beyond the immediate technical balance, what truly matters is the direction taken. This is not a team built to float, but one designed to grow. It is a Milan that takes risks, that dares, that accepts breaking with the recent past in order to open a new cycle.

The inevitable question for many fans is this: will it be enough to compete again at the highest level? Perhaps not right away. Yet the feeling is that the club has finally chosen a clear path. No longer a transfer market built on patchwork solutions, but a genuine project, supported by ambitious ownership and a management team ready to prove they can handle the pressure.

History teaches us that Milan’s cycles have never been born from conservatism, but from radical choices. It happened with Sacchi, with Capello, with Ancelotti. Today it may happen again, with a squad carrying the weight of its glorious tradition while eager to shed its recent uncertainties. The summer of 2025 will be remembered as the moment Milan turned the page. Whether it marks the beginning of a new era, only the pitch will tell. But one thing is beyond doubt: Milan has decided not to live on memories any longer, but to build a future worthy of its name.