In Milan, the history of a legendary stadium is coming to an end: On Tuesday night, the city council of the Lombard metropolis approved the sale of the Giuseppe Meazza Stadium to Inter and AC. This fulfills an important prerequisite for a new building on the same site.
This brings an end to a dispute that has been going on for years. It has long been clear to everyone involved that the San Siro or Giuseppe Meazza Stadium is getting on in years and no longer meets the requirements of a modern arena. The problem: the stadium belongs to the municipality of Milan, which was unwilling or unable to bear the costs of a new building. The solution: to sell the site to Inter and AC Milan so that the two major clubs could build a new stadium on their own.
Eleven hours of debate and 239 motions
On Monday night, the moment finally arrived, following an eleven-hour debate with 239 amendments. The sale was approved at 3:46 a.m. with 24 votes in favor, 20 against, and two abstentions. AC and Inter are paying €197 million for the 28-hectare site, which also includes the adjacent parking lots.
The new stadium, which will once again be shared by both clubs, will have a capacity of 71,500 and is scheduled for completion in 2031. According to the plan, the cost will be €1.2 billion, and it will be designed by the architectural firms Foster + Partners and Manica.
This marks the end of an era, not only for Italian soccer. San Siro—or Giuseppe Meazza Stadium, as it is officially known—has also hosted numerous international matches. Germany played five of its seven World Cup games there on its way to winning the 1990 World Cup title. In 2001, FC Bayern Munich won the Champions League there, beating FC Valencia 5-4 on penalties in the final, and in 2016, Real Madrid prevailed. The Giuseppe Meazza Stadium celebrated its opening in 1926, but has since been renovated several times and, with 75,000 seats, is still Italy’s largest soccer temple. However, it no longer meets the requirements of spectators and clubs who want to increase their revenue from stadium operations.
Legal objections still possible
However, it is still unclear when demolition and reconstruction will begin. This is because the city council’s decision to sell the site is only an intermediate step, and legal action, particularly from the opposition, which considers the sale price too low, is still possible and could delay the project. Two years ago, the city of Milan rejected plans to demolish the stadium on the grounds of “cultural interest.”
On its 100th anniversary in February, the stadium will host the opening ceremony of the 2026 Winter Olympics in Milan-Cortina (February 6-22, 2026). Milan is firmly scheduled as a venue for the 2032 European Football Championship in Turkey and Italy.
