Milan is not for sale
Silvio Berlusconi's holding company Fininvest has issued a statement denying reports suggesting Milan is up for sale.
La Gazzetta dello Sport published an interview this morning with Albanian oil magnate Rezart Taci in which he said he had spoken to Berlusconi about the sale of Milan.
While admitting that Berlusconi had no intention of selling the club, Taci did say that he would listen to offers of a certain magnitude.
The news comes just days after Italy's most prestigious tribunal ordered Fininvest to pay £690m in compensation to CIR for its controversial takeover of the Mondadori publishing house in the 1990s.
The Italian Press has taken this to mean that Fininvest might look at offloading certain assets in order to pay the damages.
“Fininvest sees itself forced once again to deny, in the most authoritative and absolute way, that any hypothesis of selling shares in Milan, even partially, exists,” a statement read.
Milan has been subject to interest from consortiums based in Libya and the Arab Emirates in recent months.
Berlusconi bought Milan in 1986 and ushered in an unprecedented era of success.
However, his position in politics makes it very difficult for him to spend money on the club, especially given the global financial crisis.
MILAN (AP) - Albanian oil tycoon Rezart Taci is prepared to purchase AC Milan for €700 million (US$1 billion), even though Silvio Berlusconi has not put the club up for sale.
"We've spoken about it. He told me that he doesn't intend to sell, but I know that if he turns in that direction he would look at my proposal," Taci told Wednesday's Gazzetta dello Sport. "We're talking about the president that has won more than anyone. ... But maybe Milan isn't such a key part of (Berlusconi's holding company Fininvest) anymore."
Milan sold off its top player, Kaka, to Real Madrid this offseason to stave off financial crisis, and the club is off to a rough start in Serie A with only nine points through seven rounds.
Earlier this year, Taci withdrew from a bid to take over Bologna. But he said he's "sure to have the necessary finances" to purchase Milan, adding that he would also be open to taking over a minority portion of the club.
A statement posted on Milan's Web site Wednesday said there are no plans to sell the club, even partially.
nah there is corruption everywhere in serie a its not that transparent
Anyway grazie Don Berlu for keeping our team 100% italian owned. Given the way we're going, soon no foreigners at all will want to come and that's fine by me 
I mean it's not like they're lebanese or anything