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Serie A's stadium problems

With most TV deals negotiated at league level and new regulations that link spending to income, top clubs across European football are raising billions of euros, dollars and pounds for stadium redevelopment with the aim of creating a more diverse pool of cash flow.

In Italy, the problems with infrastructure are acute. Serie A was the top league in the world in the 1990s, but has since seen its position slip, in large part due to a lack of investment. It now generates less broadcast income than top leagues in England, Spain and Germany, and recently concluded a domestic TV deal at a lower price than its last contract.

Club executives and owners, including a growing band of professional investors, see new stadiums as key to getting the league back on track.  “Italy is super interesting because the infrastructure has held back huge clubs with massive fanbases and international appeal, which is why we’re seeing international capital move in,” says Christopher Lee, managing director of stadium design firm Populous, who helped design Tottenham’s stadium and is working on stadium projects at both Inter Milan and Roma. “They are ultimately very undervalued assets. The stadium is the one thing that flips that.”

The two Milan teams share the San Siro, which was completed in 1926 and then renovated ahead of the 1990 World Cup. The fierce rivals have explored building a new venue together, but recently announced separate plans to build their own stadiums each with capacity for about 70,000 fans. Both would be some way south of Milan city itself. 

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