MILAN: AC Milan’s current and former American owners each said Wednesday that allegations from Italian prosecutors disputing who runs the seven-time European champion are false.
Milan’s offices were raided by police on Tuesday as part of an investigation by Italian prosecutors into the sale of the Serie A giant.
RedBird Capital Partners purchased Milan from fellow American firm Elliott Management in August 2022, but Milan prosecutors claim Elliott still owns and controls the Italian club.
“RedBird Fund IV and its investors own 99.93 percent of AC Milan; the other 0.07 percent are individual legacy Italian investors that are long standing fans of the club. The notion that RedBird doesn’t own and control AC Milan, is just false and contradicts all the evidence and facts,” RedBird said in a statement.
“When we took control of the club upon closing, Elliott provided loan financing to RedBird with a term of three years and no voting rights,” RedBird added.
In a separate statement, Elliott said “this allegation (from the Milan prosecutors) is false.”
“AC Milan was sold to RedBird on 31st August 2022. As of that date, the Elliott funds have had no equity interest in, or control over, AC Milan,” Elliott added.
Italian financial police also reportedly searched the homes of current CEO Giorgio Furlani and former chief executive Ivan Gazidis, who held the role from 2018 to 2022.
Furlani and Gazidis are being investigated for allegedly hiding information related to the sale from the Italian soccer federation.
Milan said they are a “third party and extraneous to the ongoing legal action,” adding that they were “giving their full cooperation to the investigating authority.”
Milan could nevertheless be fined or docked points by the Italian soccer federation.
RedBird also addressed speculation that the club are courting new investors in Saudi Arabia or elsewhere.
“There are no discussions with any investor who would have any control in the club,” RedBird said. “RedBird is the control owner of AC Milan and will stay that way.”
AC Milan’s current and former owners say allegations from prosecutors are false
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AC Milan’s current and former owners say allegations from prosecutors are false
- Milan prosecutors claim Elliott still owns and controls the Italian club
- Milan could nevertheless be fined or docked points by the Italian soccer federation
Diego Luna’s 2 goals lift US past Guatemala into Gold Cup final
- Luna, a 5-foot-8 Real Salt Lake midfielder, scored his first US goal on Sunday against Costa Rica and leads the team in goal contributions in 2025 with seven (three goals, four assists)
- The US will play either Honduras or Mexico, who play later Thursday, on Sunday in Houston
ST. LOUIS, Missouri: Diego Luna scored twice in the first 15 minutes and the US men’s national team held on for a 2-1 victory over Guatemala in St. Louis on Wednesday to advance to the final of the CONCACAF Gold Cup.
Luna tallied in the fourth and 15th minutes before Olger Escobar made it 2-1 in the 80th minute.
American goalkeeper Matt Freese made four saves, including a diving stop at the left post on Joes Morales in the second minute of second-half stoppage time.
The US will play either Honduras or Mexico, who play later Thursday, on Sunday in Houston.
Luna, a 5-foot-8 Real Salt Lake midfielder, scored his first US goal on Sunday against Costa Rica and leads the team in goal contributions in 2025 with seven (three goals, four assists).
At this time a year ago, he was miffed that he was not selected for the US Olympic team for the Paris Games.
Now, he is a mainstay, at least for this iteration of a team that does not include most of the European-based players. Still, Luna appears to be playing his way onto the roster for the 2026 World Cup.
He opened the scoring with his quick reaction to rebound of a long shot by Luca de la Torre. Goalkeeper Kenderson Navarro fumbled the ball straight to Luna, who brought it down with his right foot before delivering a left-footed strike.
Luna silenced the pro-Guatemala even further with his laser from 22 yards after taking a pass from Malik Tillman.
The desperate Guatemalans dominated the rest of the half, outshooting the US 12-2 over the final 20 minutes.
Navarro was the story early in the second half as the US looked for a third goal. First, he parried a header by Patrick Agyemang in the 62nd minute, then two minutes later Agyemang broke free but couldn’t get the ball past the keeper.
The saves proved huge when Escobar dribbled to the top of the box and slipped a shot through several Americans.
This was the nations’ first-ever meeting in a Gold Cup knockout round and Guatemala’s first appearance in a Gold Cup semifinal since 1996.
Hosts Switzerland beaten 2-1 by Norway in their Women’s Euro opener
- The hosts had plenty of opportunities to grab what would have been a famous victory but the Norwegians dug deep to snatch a narrow win
- The victory puts the Norwegians top of Group A, with Finland second after their 1-0 win over Iceland earlier in the day
BASEL, Switzerland: Switzerland took the lead against Norway but fell to a 2-1 defeat on home soil after scoring an own goal on the opening day of the Women’s Euro 2025 Championship on Wednesday, with Norwegian captain Ada Hegerberg netting the equalizer and missing a penalty.
The hosts had plenty of opportunities to grab what would have been a famous victory but the Norwegians dug deep to snatch a narrow win, their third over the Swiss by a single goal in 2025.
Having lost to the Norwegians twice in the Nations League this year, the home side dominated the opening 45 minutes and Geraldine Reuteler came close to giving them the lead in the 24th minute with a shot that cannoned back off the crossbar before Nadine Riesen struck four minutes later to send the St. Jakob-Park Stadium into raptures.
Riesen reacted quickly to an attack that broke down, rattling the ball past Vilde Boe Risa and off the near post into the net to send the Swiss fans at St. Jakob-Park into raptures.
However, it was a different story after the break and it was Norway’s Hegerberg who turned the page.
After barely featuring in the first half, she leveled nine minutes into the second with an emphatic header from a corner that briefly silenced the home crowd and four minutes later, under pressure from Hegerberg, Switzerland’s Julia Stierli turned a low cross from Caroline Graham Hansen into her own net.
Reuteler was sparkling throughout for the Swiss but despite a number of golden chances, she could not get the goal both she and her team deserved, and she conceded a penalty which Hegerberg missed in the 70th minute.
Switzerland were awarded a spot-kick of their own that was overturned after a VAR review and, as the Swiss poured forward, the Norwegians hung on grimly for a victory that puts them top of Group A, with Finland second after their 1-0 win over Iceland earlier in the day.
“This was important, this means a lot for us... the goal was euphoria for me but it was damn important for the team as well,” Hegerberg told Norwegian broadcaster TV2.
“It is very strong of us to manage to turn it around. It may not happen in the prettiest way. We were told forcefully during the break that we did not run enough, then we saw two clips, a defensive and offensive, about how to take them, I think we managed to do that,” vice-captain Graham Hansen said.
Swiss coach Pia Sundhage was unhappy that her side did not manage to get more out of the game.
“I think it’s very heavy, a defeat like that. Our game plan was good and we even scored a goal... today it’s tough but tomorrow we’ll see a smile and start working,” she told broadcaster SVT.
Liverpool defender Quansah signs for Bayer Leverkusen
- The transfer fee for the 22-year-old could go up to $47m
- “We are very happy to be able to sign Jarell Quansah, one of the most promising English central defenders,” said Rolfes
MUNICH: Center-half Jarell Quansah has joined Bayer Leverkusen from Premier League champions Liverpool for a reported club record fee, the Bundesliga side announced on Wednesday.
According to British and German press, the transfer fee for the 22-year-old could go up to 40 million euros ($47 million), including 10 million euros in add-ons.
German specialist media Kicker and The Athletic also reported the inclusion of a 60-million-euros buy-back clause in the contract, which Liverpool could activate from summer 2027 to re-sign Quansah.
“We are very happy to be able to sign Jarell Quansah, one of the most promising English central defenders,” said Leverkusen managing director of sport Simon Rolfes.
“He made a very impressive contribution to a Liverpool defense full of world-class players. Jarell will give our defense extra dynamism, tempo and strength.”
Quansah becomes the most expensive signing in Leverkusen’s history, following on from the previous record arrival of midfielder Kerem Demirbay for 32 million euros in 2019.
The 2025 European under-21 champion with England joined Liverpool’s academy as a five-year-old, and rose through the ranks before making his first-team debut in 2023.
He went on to appear 58 times for the Merseysiders, winning the League Cup in 2022 and 2024, as well as the Premier League title last season.
After playing second fiddle to first-choice defensive duo Virgil van Dijk and Ibrahima Konate for much of the 2024/25 campaign, Quansah arrives at Leverkusen to replace departed former captain Jonathan Tah at the heart of the Bundesliga club’s defense.
“The ambitious targets here were clearly explained to me during the negotiations. It’s a great role and challenge for me to be part of the current Leverkusen rebuild,” said Quansah.
After creating league history by winning the Bundesliga undefeated in 2024, Leverkusen endured a difficult title defense last term, finishing 13 points adrift of winners Bayern Munich.
Stars of their league-and-cup double from two seasons years ago, Florian Wirtz and Jeremie Frimpong, have recently gone in the opposite direction from Quansah, joining Liverpool from Leverkusen this close-season.
Real Madrid quarterfinal just a bonus for ‘overperforming’ Dortmund
- Kovac came out on top in May when he pitted his wits against new Real coach Xabi Alonso when the Spaniard was in charge at Bayer Leverkusen
ATLANTA, Georgia: Borussia Dortmund coach Niko Kovac said a date in the Club World Cup quarterfinals against Real Madrid was just a bonus for his overperforming team, who held off a second-half comeback from Monterrey to win 2-1 in the round of 16 on Tuesday.
Two goals from Serhou Guirassy put Dortmund well on top at halftime and Kovac was pleased with how hard they battled after their Mexican opponents stormed back in the second half.
Although Dortmund lost 2-0 to Real in the 2024 Champions League final, they have experienced something of a revival since Kovac took over from Nuri Sahin in February.
They earned a spot in next season’s Champions League with a victory over Kiel in their last match of the Bundesliga season and have continued to improve at the Club World Cup.
Kovac came out on top in May when he pitted his wits against new Real coach Xabi Alonso when the Spaniard was in charge at Bayer Leverkusen.
The Croatian might be downplaying their ambitions of going further but Real would be wise to take their challenge seriously, especially if they can replicate Tuesday’s first-half performance.
Key quotes
Dortmund coach Niko Kovac: “We are happy. I think we overperformed. We passed the group stage. This is now on top. This is a bonus for us, and now playing against the biggest team and biggest club in the world is a good challenge.”
“I think that for us, Borussia Dortmund, and also for German football as a whole, this is a big, big deal.”
Dortmund coach Niko Kovac: “We know (Xabi Alonso) very well. So he worked two and a half years in Germany, and he did a fantastic job.
“Now he’s implementing everything he had in Leverkusen at Real Madrid. So we’re expecting the same what we had in Leverkusen, only with different players.
“We’re looking forward to it but you have to play football for 90 minutes, and if we put everything onto the pitch, same performance as we saw today, I think that we will have a good chance.”
Convictions in FIFA corruption case reinstated: court
- Hernan Lopez, a former executive with 21st Century Fox, and marketing firm Full Play, had been acquitted on appeal
- An appeals court on Wednesday found that the decision to acquit on appeal had been erroneous
NEW YORK: A United States appeals court on Wednesday reinstated the convictions of a former Fox broadcasting executive and an Argentine sports-marketing firm involved in the FIFA corruption scandal.
Hernan Lopez, a former executive with 21st Century Fox, and marketing firm Full Play, had been acquitted on appeal following their conviction in 2023 after a judge cited precedent from a US Supreme Court ruling.
However an appeals court in New York on Wednesday found that the decision to acquit on appeal had been erroneous, citing a misreading of the law surrounding federal wire fraud.
“We hold that the district court erred in concluding that defendants’ conduct did not fall within the scope of Statute 1346,” a ruling said.
“Therefore, we vacate the district court’s judgments,” the Second Circuit Court of Appeals ruled, remanding the case for “further proceedings pursuant to this opinion.”
Lopez and Full Play’s case was was one of several to emerge from the 2015 probe from the US Justice Department which rocked world soccer’s governing body FIFA and continental confederations for South and North America.
The US investigation, which included raids on FIFA officials in Zurich, led to a series of arrests and trails and subsequent charges, convictions and guilty pleas.
Lopez and Full Play were found guilty on charges of wire fraud conspiracy and money laundering conspiracy in March 2023.
Lopez faced up to 40 years in prison and millions of dollars in penalties. Full Play was expected to face millions of dollars in fines.
Before the convictions of Lopez and Full Play, the court had heard that the main beneficiaries of the kickback scheme were six of the most powerful men in South American football.
They included former CONMEBOL president Nicolas Leoz, who died in 2019, former Argentine football executive Julio Grondona, who died in 2014, and former Brazilian football chief Ricardo Teixeira.
