Former Inter Milan CEO Ernesto Paolillo is pessimistic that plans to renovate the San Siro can be made “economically viable.”
The former executive spoke to Italian outlet Sporteconomy.it, giving his thoughts on the plans regarding the stadium situation in Milan.
At the moment, Milan Mayor Beppe Sala is trying to push for Inter and Milan to stay at the San Siro.
For a long time, the clubs have insisted that they cannot do so.
The reason is that the existing stadium does not meet the Nerazzurri and the Rossoneri’s financial needs.
Whilst the San Siro is an iconic stadium and has a large capacity, there is an issue in terms of its limited corporate and hospitality accommodations.
Moreover, there is a relative lack of other sources of revenues. Shops, club museums, restaurants, parking, and other similar forms of commercial revenue would certainly be welcome by the clubs.
Therefore, Inter and Milan have insisted on alternative plans.
Paolillo Pessimistic San Siro Renovation Plans “Economically Viable”
The hope of Milan Mayor Sala is that significant renovations to the San Siro could change the clubs’ minds.
The Mayor is working with architectural firm WeBuild. That firm has proposed plans to modify the stadium significantly.
Sala has stated that he remains optimistic that he can convince Inter and Milan.
However, for his part, former Inter CEO Paolillo is very doubtful regarding the Mayor’s plans.
He argued that “Building a new stadium would cost less than renovating the Meazza.”
He called the existing stadium “An enormous mass of concrete which is built in such a way that it’s difficult to transform into a stadium that would accommodate commercial activities and other events like concerts that would generate concerts.”
“To be at its best, a stadium must be used seven days a week,” Paolillo argued.
“And many hours a day. Therefore, it needs to accommodate a lot of different activities within it.”
“According the the most recent insights,” the former CEO argued, “it would not be viable to make it into something economically useful.”
