🇬🇧 English Translation
By Andrea Caropreso
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The heaviest defeat in history will undoubtedly leave a lasting scar for Inter, but the club can find some minor consolation in achieving its first profit under the Oaktree era. In fact, Inter will close the financial year on June 30 with a budget finally showing a positive balance, a significant shift after the austerity-driven Zhang era.
Revenues will break the €500 million barrier, reaching between €515 and €520 million, and the profit will be around €20 million. This is a true record for Italian football, as the last time a club recorded such figures was Juventus during the Ronaldo era — the last to reach those heights.
Champions League Treasure
This has been made possible mainly thanks to the treasure trove accumulated from UEFA payments for Inter’s clean run to the final. Prizes amounted to €137 million, plus €50 million from ticket sales and €2 million in bonuses from “occasional” sponsors linked to the Munich final.
In this way, Inter managed to offset the decline in revenue from Serie A broadcasting rights, which were sold for less than in previous deals. This positive balance — something the club, under the leadership of Giuseppe Marotta, hadn’t seen in years — will also impact the summer transfer market. The window, extended due to the Club World Cup, has already opened.
Inter is expected to rejuvenate the squad and perhaps even make a change on the bench. This sort of mini-revolution, however, can now take place without the strict financial restrictions that had previously limited the club’s transfer moves. No wild spending sprees are expected, to be clear, but at least the market won’t have to break even on incoming and outgoing transfers.
Accounting Balance
The positive result in Inter’s budget is expected to be around €20–25 million. This is the result of meticulous work by the new ownership, highlighted by two significant figures: on one hand, net debt, which — according to the most recent financial statement dated June 30, 2024 — has decreased to €326 million; on the other hand, the club’s valuation, which as of January 1, 2025, has reached €1.715 billion.
A major success for Oaktree’s American ownership, which has seen the club’s value grow significantly compared to the day they took over from Zhang. Notably, this milestone has been achieved without selling star players.
Indeed, the Nerazzurri can now focus on renewing contracts with top players like Barella and Lautaro, who might have represented an easier way to balance previous budgets. But that path was not taken. The Champions League run — part strategic, part unexpected — certainly helped. Yet, the scouting and market team’s ability to find low-cost but high-impact players like Calhanoglu laid the foundation. These were the cornerstone signings for building an ambitious project that led to Inter’s second Champions League final in three years. And even if the gold medal went to someone else, with these foundations, the future looks much brighter.
By Andrea Caropreso
