In a bid to “bring a winning culture” back to the club, AC Milan named Massimo Calvelli as CEO, one day after sources told ESPN they rejected an approach from New York City FC for United States attacker Christian Pulisic.
The 51-year-old Calvelli replaces Giorgio Furlani, who was fired by U.S. owner, RedBird Capital Partners, last month as it cleaned house after what it deemed “an unequivocal failure” of a season.
“The mandate is clear — we will play to win, instead of playing not to lose — in everything that AC Milan touches, but most importantly on the field,” RedBird managing partner Gerry Cardinale said in a statement.
“The entire organization at AC Milan will now benefit tremendously from his full time appointment and sense of urgency to bring a winning culture and results back to the club.”
Pulisic’s current contract runs through June 2027, with a club option to extend that deal by a year, and Milan are reportedly keen to sign the U.S. star to a new deal.
But Pulisic will likely want to see more signs of stability as part of this first step within the club before agreeing to a contract extension.
That might not happen until next summer, when the time remaining on Pulisic’s contract means that his transfer value will be lower than it is currently.
Calvelli, meanwhile, will continue to serve as CEO International at RedBird Development Group and Operating Partner at RedBird Capital Partners. A former professional tennis player, he was previously ATP CEO from 2020-25.
“Since joining RedBird last year, Massimo has distinguished himself as a leader and driver of organizational design that brings people together and establishes a culture of collaboration and professionalism,” Cardinale said.
“Our model at RedBird often requires our senior leadership to go “in house” in our most important investments to ensure best in class execution, especially in situations requiring change and innovation.”
Milan spent much of last season in the top two positions and fighting for the Serie A title. But a run of only two wins in their last eight matches dropped them to fifth on the last day of the campaign and saw them miss out on Champions League qualification.
That led to a number of dismissals, including coach Massimiliano Allegri. He was replaced by Rúben Amorim earlier this month.
“The opportunity to lead AC Milan as it navigates this critical moment in its football trajectory, as well as within the overall state of Italian football, is something I take very seriously and with a profound sense of urgency,” Calvelli said.
“The mandate from Gerry is to bring a culture of winning and results both on and off the field back to AC Milan … I’ve had a full year working collaboratively with the senior leadership of the club across all functions and have a hands-on sense of what needs to be fixed and innovated.”
Information from The Associated Press and ESPN’s Jeff Carlisle was used in this report.
