Suning becomes Oaktree: Shortly after the championship, Inter Milan change hands. Not much will change in terms of personnel – but perhaps something very decisive
The acclaimed 20th championship is followed by a change of ownership: the traditional Italian club Inter Milan is no longer owned by the Suning Holdings Group because President Steven Zhang failed to repay a loan fee of almost 400 million euros – or to reach a new agreement. It was Oaktree Capital Management, to whom this sum was to be paid.
Oaktree is a globally active US investment company that now holds 99.6 percent of the shares in the new Italian champions.
According to Italian media reports, this does not mean any change for the current club directors. Giuseppe Marotta, Piero Ausilio, Dario Baccin and Alessandro Antonello are to remain in office despite the multi-million euro change of ownership. In addition, Carlo Marchetti and Amedeo Carassai will also serve at this level – two men who have represented Oaktree at Inter in recent years.
The captain of the triple team
The decision as to who will succeed Zhang under Oaktree’s leadership, i.e. who will become the new club president, will be more exciting. According to the Italian newspaper Tuttosport, two options are emerging: Either the investment company opts for a rather technocratic president – or for an identification figure who is popular with the fans.
In the latter case, it can only be club icon Javier Zanetti, who has already been vice president in the past. The 50-year-old Argentinian, once a versatile world-class player, wore the Inter shirt from 1995 to 2014 and won the treble as captain in 2009/10 under coach José Mourinho – including a fifth consecutive championship.
Should the outstanding Nerazzurri, who could become champions this season with a lead of over 20 points, now go on another run, Zanetti would be a face that fans at the top can identify with wonderfully