Chinese company Alibaba could replace Suning as the majority shareholders and owners of Inter, with the e-commerce group poised for a takeover of the Nerazzurri owners’ parent company.
This according to today’s print edition of Milan-based newspaper Libero, who report that the stepping down of founder Zhang Jindong as head of Suning.com could represent the beginning of the Zhang family’s divestment from Inter.
The financial problems at Suning, who took over at Inter in 2016, have been well known, with liquidity and debt problems exacerbated by the pandemic plaguing the company and also affecting their running of the Nerazzurri.
With Jindong’s resignation as head of Suning, it is thought that control of the Suning.com company will largely fall into the hands of Alibaba, who recently purchased significant shares in the company.
It remains to be seen how Alibaba would treat the Nerazzurri as an asset, with the club bringing in significant revenues but also major losses and debt.
However, should Alibaba founder Jack Ma come into control of the club it is not thought that much would be affected on a footballing level, with CEO Beppe Marotta and other trusted directors still likely to be the ones steering the club on the pitch.