Italian Football Finance Expert Declares ‘Inter Milan Have Solved Balance Sheet Problems – 90% Of Losses Already Covered’ | OneFootball

Italian football finance expert Marco Bellinazzo says that Inter Milan have “solved their balance sheet problems” under Oaktree Capital.

The journalist from Il Sole 24 Ore spoke to Telelombardia, via FCInter1908. He argued that the Nerazzurri have “already covered 90% of their losses.”

It is no secret that Inter have had some major financial problems in recent years.

These particularly cropped up during the start of the COVID-19 pandemic.

No European football clubs escaped the financial pressures brought on by a lack of revenues due to the pandemic-related disruptions.

However, Inter particularly suffered. Among other factors were the fact that the parent company of Inter owners Suning, a Chinese retail giant, were themselves facing a dire financial situation.

Therefore, Inter had heavy operating losses from 2020 onwards. The story of what happened next is by now well-known.

Suning took on a massive loan from North American fund Oaktree Capital in the spring of 2021 – this allowed them to stabilize the situation at the club.

However, that loan saw Suning put their shares in Inter up as collateral.

The former owners did make an attempt to refinance their debt to Oaktree. However, it was unsuccessful.

Therefore, control of Inter Milan passed into the hands of Oaktree Capital last May, the due date for their loan to Suning.

Bellinazzo: “Inter Milan Have Solved Their Balance Sheet Problems”

Inter’s financial situation has continued to be the subject of some confusion and misconceptions.

However, Italian football finance expert Bellinazzo stated that “At the moment, Inter are a club who have solved in large part the financial problems that they were dealing with.”

UDINE, ITALY – APRIL 08: Giuseppe Marotta, CEO of Sport for FC Internazionale looks on prior to the Serie A TIM match between Udinese Calcio and FC Internazionale at Dacia Arena on April 08, 2024 in Udine, Italy. (Photo by Alessandro Sabattini/Getty Images)

“Particularly after the COVID pandemic, and relating to the exit of their Chinese ownership.”

“Today,” Bellinazzo explained, “they have a solid ownership. And a project that’s not a short-term one.”

“They’ve got a balance sheet from 2024 with record revenues of €470 million,” he noted.

“And the losses reduced to €36 million.”

Bellinazzo did note that Inter “still have a very high debt situation.”

“That involves an outlay of €30-40 million per year in interest. And that still needs to be solved.”

“But otherwise, they’re a club that have emerged from the pandemic quite well.”

Bellinazzo commented that “Clubs like Inter and Juve who had begun major investment plans found themselves in serious difficulty at that stage.”

“And they had to accelerate their recovery plan by facing deficits of hundreds of millions of euros.”

“But they managed to do so quite well,” he said.

“90% Of Losses Already Covered – No Problems Registering For Serie A”

Meanwhile, Bellinazzo rubbished the rumours that Inter could have trouble registering for Serie A due to financial issues or falling foul of league regulations.

“In my opinion there’s nothing to suggest that would be the case,” he said.

“Inter have had a series of financial problems,” he noted. “Moreso than other clubs.”

“They’ve used the same legislation that was available everyone to defer covering their losses [emergency rule-changes during the pandemic-related financial crisis.]”

“And 90% of them have already been covered,” explained Bellinazzo.

“Then this put them in a position where they were easily able to register for the league. And they are not a club on the verge of liquidation.”

“If we then ask whether there should be more stringent rules, I absolutely believe so,” Bellinazzo argued.

“But if we look at Inter’s assets and the parameters for debt, wage bills, and registration, they’ve respected them,” he made clear.

“And it’s the same in Europe. Inter are under a settlement agreement they signed in 2022, and have respected it.”

“The new UEFA golden rule requires spending no more than 70% of revenues on player wages, transfer fees, and agent fees,” Bellinazzo explained.

“Inter will respect it by 2024. It’s about 60% of costs for them.”

“There’s always room for improvement,” added the football finance expert. “But to talk about a club on the verge of liquidation and being unable to sign up for the league seems harsh to me.”