Inter Milan’s Chinese owners miss €395m payment – so Oaktree takes over at Serie A champions

US investment fund Oaktree Capital Management said it had taken ownership of Italian football champions Inter Milan after a missed €395m payment from the club’s Chinese majority shareholder.

The loan was granted by Oaktree in 2021 to the Luxembourg-based vehicle through which Chinese conglomerate Suning controlled Inter. Crucially, the loan was guaranteed by the stake in the club.

That gave Oaktree, which specialises in providing rescue funding to struggling firms, the potential right to take control of the club in the event of a default.

“Oaktree is committed to working closely with Inter Milan’s current management team, partners, the league and governing bodies to ensure the club is positioned for success on and off the pitch,” it said in a statement.

A source close to the matter said Oaktree, which has only limited previous involvement in sports franchises, was not planning to sell Inter immediately and was prepared to be a “patient investor”.

The upheaval off the field contrasts with the club’s success on it, with Inter having secured their 20th Serie A league title. It was their second title under Suning’s ownership.

Founded in 1908, Inter is one of the traditional powers in Italian football and home to top players including Lautaro Martinez and Nicolo Barella.

The Suning conglomerate bought a majority stake in the club in 2016 in one of the highest-profile forays by a Chinese business into European football.

Since then, Chinese authorities have imposed curbs over overseas spending in sport, and Suning has been hit by the Covid downturn.

That prompted Suning to get a €275m emergency financing package, carrying roughly 12pc interest, three years ago from Oaktree. This helped Inter weather the pandemic crisis.

In a letter to fans on the club website on Saturday, Inter chairman Steven Zhang, the 32-year-old son of Suning founder Zhang Jindong, warned the club was at risk as attempts to do a deal with Oaktree had been unsuccessful.

Inter made an annual loss of €86m in the 2022-2023 fiscal year and its total gross debts stood at €807m.

Oaktree’s move mirrors the takeover of Inter’s local rivals AC Milan by US hedge fund Elliott Management in 2018. Elliott took control of AC Milan after Chinese businessman Li Yonghong missed a payment to the fund.

Elliott eventually sold AC Milan to RedBird Capital Partners in a €1.2bn deal four years later.

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