No plea bargain. UEFA has denied the Settlement Agreement to AC Milan after saying ‘no’ to the Voluntary Agreement a few months ago.
Now the Rossoneri club goes to trial, around mid-June and at that day anything can happen. The five judges council has a wide range of sanctions applicable, up to the extreme: that is, exclusion from European cups. In this case, goodbye Europa League, with the inclusion of Atalanta in the group stage and Fiorentina in the second preliminary round. There is still a window, actually, but very limited.
THE DECISION – AC Milan were informed today in the late afternoon. It does not happen often: UEFA and the clubs usually manage to reach a plea agreement of mutual benefit. But the conditions did not exist here. Nyon leaders will never confess it, but the strategy of the investigative commission was clear enough: it gave time to Milan, in the hope that good news would come about debt refinancing, ownership issues and future revenues. Then push back the final decision as late as possible. Inside sources claim that Milan did not add elements that could have changed the initial decision.
UEFA’s official statement
“The Investigatory Chamber of the UEFA Club Financial Control Body (CFCB) has decided to refer Italian club AC Milan to the Adjudicatory Chamber of the CFCB for breach of the Financial Fair Play regulations, in particular the break-even requirement. After careful examination of all the documentation and explanations provided by the club, the CFCB Investigatory Chamber considers that the circumstances of the case do not allow the conclusion of a settlement agreement.
In particular, the CFCB Investigatory Chamber is of the opinion that, among other factors, there remains uncertainties in relation to the refinancing of the loan and the notes to be paid back in October 2018. The Adjudicatory Chamber will make a decision on this case in due course. The CFCB Investigatory Chamber will further communicate in June its other decisions in relation to the monitoring of the clubs under investigation or under settlement agreement”.
