Milan

A.C. Milan was founded in 1899 by two Englishmen - Herbert Kilpin and Alfred Edwards. A.C. Milan won their first championship title in 1901 and repeated that success in 1906 and 1907. Some of the players left A.C. Milan in 1908 due to disagreements over the team formation policy. The rebels formed F.C. Internazionale Milano. It was not until 1951 that A.C. Milan lacked the titles after splitting.

In the 1960s midfielder Gianni Rivera, the first Italian player to receive the UEFA Ballon d’Or award, came to the club. He helped A.C. Milan to claim the European Cup in 1963 and 1969. After that A.C. Milan went into a period of decline. In 1980 the club was involved in a corruption scandal and was relegated to Serie B.

Media mogul Silvio Berlusconi acquired A.C. Milan in 1986 and started investing a lot of money in the club. The famous Arrigo Sacchi was set to manage the new team. ‘The Great Dutchmen’ Gullit, Rijkaard and van Basten dominated both the midfield and the attack. The defense was virtually impenetrable with Maldini, Baresi, Panucci and Costacurta guarding the goalkeeper. With such an impressive team A.C. Milan managed to win 5 championship titles and 3 European Cups/Champions Leagues (in 1989, 1990 and 1994).

After those glorious years Milan’s performance slightly faded until a new coach Carlo Ancelotti replaced Fatih Terim in 2001. He formed a powerful midfield with Gattuso, Pirlo, Seedorf, Kaka and Ambrosini creating the new style. The club bore the fruits of that change in 2003 and 2007 winning the UEFA Champions Leagues, defeating Juventus and Liverpool respectively.

A.C. Milan has won a total of 17 scudetti, and 5 Italian Cups.

The club shares Giuseppe Meazza stadium, better known among the fans as ‘San Siro’ with its local rival F.C. Internazionale Milano. This magnificent stadium hosts 83.000 spectators. A.C. Milan has been supported mostly by working class, while F.C. Internazionale Milano by well-off middle class. The common uniform for the club is white shorts, red and black striped shirts, black socks. The players of A.C. Milan are nicknamed ‘The Devils’ or ‘Rossoneri’ (The Red and Blacks).

The record result dates back to 1951 when the club beat U.S. Città di Palermo by 9-0. The most significant loss to U.S. Alessandria Calcio happened in 1936, while in 1997 the team suffered a humiliating defeat from Juventus 1-6.