Newly revealed information shows how the Elliott investment fund exerted influence over LOSC and AC Milan during the 2020–2022 seasons, while both clubs were competing simultaneously in the Europa League and then the Champions League, something they could have been banned from doing.
> “I looked into how to get rid of him, but I was told he couldn’t be fired.” This harsh statement is directed at the author of this article.
> Maarten Petermann (1), a Dutch partner and executive at Merlyn Partners, the company that has owned LOSC since 2020 wrote this on June 17, 2022, in a WhatsApp group chat.
> Years of investigation have brought new information to light. These revelations originate from an investigation conducted in Italy by the Milan Public Prosecutor’s Office into RedBird’s acquisition of AC Milan from Elliott Management in 2022 (3), following a complaint filed by a minority shareholder, Blue Skye. Searches conducted by the financial police, the Guardia di Finanza, in January 2023 and then in March 2024 led to the seizure of WhatsApp chats, emails, and text messages from Giorgio Furlani’s phone. This former Elliott finance executive previously oversaw the hedge fund’s investment in LOSC.
> These exchanges reveal links between Lille and AC Milan in how the two clubs were managed. They also show decisions on Lille's transfers (Sanches, Onana, Botman) that were tied to discussions about AC Milan's governance.
> Elliott was suspected of exercising control over the Dogues, since the companies (Birch) that finance the holding company behind Lille (Callisto Sporting) are registered at Elliott in Delaware (United States). A situation that, if proven true, would have disallowed Lille and AC Milan from competing in the same European competition during the same season, which they did twice.